The Anchor of Love
by Camzy
Summary: Two years after TLO, tension at camp separates Percy and Annabeth. Now, godly forces and dangerous waters threaten to keep them apart for good. How far will the two heroes go to reunite? Romance, Greek Mythology, Angst, Action and Adventure guaranteed!
1. Prologue and Talk of Stars

_Story written from Percy's POV unless otherwise stated. No changes in POV mid-chapter._

Hey guys!

First story I've written on here, and it's an ambitious Percabeth Adventure!

I've got a big plan for what I want to do with this story. It's going to be quite long too, so you'll be in for quite a ride.  
Most of all, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it.

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**THE ANCHOR OF LOVE**

**Prologue**

The forest was noisiest at this time of day. Leaves rustled from their resting places on the forest floor, birds sang clear songs up on the treetops and a small stream gurgled loudly nearby. It was no wonder then that the young deer took no notice of the stealthy youth crouched in the bushes. His fair hair shimmered as it caught the light and he quickly ducked back into shadow, his hands reaching for the bow on his back. The deer stopped for a moment, finally aware of unseeing eyes, but it was too late, a burst of gold hit its flank and it fell heavily to the ground.

"I'm glad I won't have to send you to Artemis," a woman's voice rang out from nearby.

"Mother," the youth replied, a hint of embarrassment in his voice.

"It's taken you long enough. I've lost count of how many times I've had to defend you to the Olympian council when you've shot the wrong person!" the woman said sarcastically, stepping out from behind a tree.

She was breathtaking. Her every fiber seemed to emit an aura of intoxicating beauty, every curve perfect and her face was the most beautiful face you could ever imagine. She seemed to just light up every place she entered, her beauty dazzling the world. She was Aphrodite, goddess of love.

"I'll do it when he's asleep… just in case," Eros said as he emerged from his hiding place.

He was as handsome as a person could be: tall, with curly blond hair and defined features. A carefree air surrounded him that seemed to lighten the mood of the forest itself. He walked over to the fallen deer and quietly knelt beside it, placing one hand on its flank. The beast inhaled and exhaled contentedly, lost in sweet dreams.

"Are you sure you got the mixture right?" Aphrodite asked as she approached, her bare feet light on the ground. "The arrows won't work properly on animals."

"Yes," Eros replied. "It's just enough so the boy won't notice."

"I trust you," she said, but her tone indicated otherwise.

Eros took out his quiver of arrows: half of them made of an incredible gold colored substance and the other half made of a dark-grey, lead-like substance. He pulled out a golden arrow and held it out by the shaft.

Aphrodite eagerly took it from him, but was careful not to come into contact with the arrow head. She held it up to the light, turned it over in her hands and finally held it up to her nose. She returned it to Eros a few seconds later, a stunning smile on her face.

"I haven't tried something like this for centuries. This is going to be so much fun!" she cooed delightfully. "There's one last thing I need to prepare and Hephaestus should have it ready by now. I'll let you know when to proceed." With that, Aphrodite shimmered on the spot, disappearing in a burst of white light.

**Chapter One**

**Talk of Stars**

It's been two years since the Battle of Manhattan. I saved the world, was offered immortality and became the next Achilles, but that's all water under the bridge. Camp Half-Blood loomed in the distance, and I eagerly raced up the hill.

Thalia's pine stood healthily over the entrance to camp, with the Golden Fleece hanging loosely from its branches. Peleus, the dragon guard, watched me lazily as I made my way into camp. It was a fine day with wispy white clouds hovering in the sky, and the sun shining brightly. The gods were most obliging with the weather in recent months, and Camp Half-Blood didn't need its magical weather defying properties often.

Wood nymphs sang peaceful songs, and flowers blossomed everywhere I looked. The beautiful state of nature at Camp made me think of my best friend Grover. As a member of the Council of Cloven Elders, he had many things to do, and I hadn't seen him much. I hoped he would have some time off to come and visit.

As I approached the main cabins, a delicious aroma wafted across the Camp. A warm fire was blazing in the middle of the dining area, and campers were eating their lunch.

There were over a hundred campers this year, a huge increase from the thirty or so that remained after the Battle of Manhattan. The gods were true to their word. Two years ago, I asked of them a small favor – to claim all their half blood children by the age of thirteen, and to include all the minor gods. The twelve cabin U shape that had been in place for centuries, had expanded to a rectangular plot with additional cabins dedicated to Hecate, Morpheus, Nemesis and other minor gods.

I was interrupted from my thoughts by a loud "Percy!" Annabeth rushed over and gave me a huge hug.

She pulled away quite quickly though, wary of causing a scene. Her hair smelled like fresh strawberries and she wore a friendly smile. As I sat down at my own table, I felt dozens of eyes on me, and heard whispers behind my back. I had never gotten used to the feeling that I was a famous hero.

I was just Percy Jackson.

As I began to stock my plate with food, Chiron, the legendary centaur teacher, cantered over.

"How've you been Percy?" Chiron asked.

"School's OK and I haven't had too many monsters after me," I replied.

"Blue Cherry Coke," I said to an empty glass. It instantly filled up with blue soda and I took a cautious sip.

Chiron looked me over with his kind and wise eyes.

"Things haven't been this peaceful in a thousand years. I quite like it, but you never can be too careful. Evil is always threatening to rise."

I walked slowly with him towards the fire where I made an offering to my father, Poseidon.

"It's good to have you back, Percy." Chiron said as he trotted off to another table.

After lunch, I headed back to the Poseidon cabin. I didn't get any new brothers and sisters contrary to what my father told me. He did say that my mother was the most extraordinary woman he'd met this millennia, although I would have enjoyed some company from time to time.

I thought of my half-brother Tyson. He had forged a new watch-shield for me last year. I lost the most recent one to Kampê in Daedalus' Labyrinth. I gazed at it fondly, the gleaming bronze a reminder of our lasting friendship.

I met Annabeth outside for sword training in the afternoon. I hadn't seen her for the past six months because she was in San Francisco, staying with her father and step-mother. As we traded blows, I tried very hard not to get distracted, but it was extremely difficult.

Annabeth had become even more beautiful over the last two years. She had grown out her curly blond hair, and her athletic figure was enhanced by a natural tan. Her eyes, deep gray and thoughtful, studied me like she would a book.

"Dead again" she said, but it was followed up by a playful smile.

Riptide hadn't seen much use in the last year, and I was rusty. Annabeth, of course, hadn't neglected her swordsmanship. She always had a plan in case things went wrong.

Swordplay was tiring, especially since I was a bit out of shape, so I had to take a nap in the afternoon. As I curled up on my lonely bed in Cabin Three, I was back at the River Styx again. For many nights since the end of the war, I dreamt of this moment.

Annabeth's voice echoed above the surface of the water, "Hold on, Seaweed Brain. You're not getting away from me that easily."

Her orange Camp Half-Blood T-Shirt and Yankees Cap were blurry from the water's refraction, and I felt a tugging sensation from the small of my back. Nobody knew about my mortal spot except Annabeth. Every time I had that dream, I woke up thinking how my entire mortal being was seemingly anchored to her. I realized how much I cared for her, and that losing her would probably claim my life too.

That night after we had dinner and told stories by the campfire, I made my way over to the Athena table. I took Annabeth's hand and led her away. She seemed a little bit surprised, but came along with me to the Canoe Lake.

The moon shone brightly, illuminating the water's surface as we walked down to the beach.

"What is it, Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth teased, her eyes flashing the same shade as the glow of the moon.

"I … er… wanted to… um…" why did this always happen when situations like this came up!

"Go fishing?" she asked with a mischievous grin.

"Well er … no… it's just that… well… I missed you."

Annabeth came closer, "I missed you too."

Our lips met and I felt a warm tingling sensation flood over my body. I shivered with pleasure, I didn't want it to end, but Annabeth recoiled.

"Are you OK?" her eyes were full of concern, and then I realized there were tears streaming down my face.

I muttered an inaudible "Fine," as she hugged me tightly.

I linked hands with her and we set off along the beach. The water rose and fell gently around our feet. The smooth sand caught between my toes and calmed me. I glanced over at Annabeth and she gave me a reassuring smile.

We walked until we reached our favorite spot - a large slab of rock overlooking the Canoe Lake, with the forest to our left, and the Camp behind us. I lay down on the rock, tired for some unknown reason. Annabeth took up the cue and lay beside me.

"The Huntress – I can see her. Zoe." Annabeth continued, "I want to be a constellation someday - immovable, permanent, something lasting."

I felt like I should have said something more, but I could only mutter an uncomfortable, "Yeah."

She slid her right hand over and touched my cheek. "You're not Heracles, Percy. You're braver, a better person." It always startled me how Annabeth could tell what I was thinking.

Zoe Nightshade was a friend of ours who was killed by her own father Atlas, near Mount Othrys. She was an immortal huntress for Artemis, and before that, fell in love with Heracles. She gave my sword, Anaklusmos to him as a gift, and told him how to get a Golden Apple from the Garden of the Hesperides.

Heracles never repaid her, and took all the credit for his success. It broke her heart, and she was banished by her sisters. I couldn't help but feel a little too much like Heracles. I was so happy after the war; I never stopped to think about what really happened, and what I really cared about.

Looking back, I was responsible for so many deaths. Bianca DiAngelo, who I promised to protect; Charles Beckendorf, who died on a mission we went on together; and all the other half bloods who had died defending Manhattan.

"Percy…" Annabeth whispered softly.

I felt my heart do a quick flip. I squeezed her hand a bit tighter and shut my eyes. The spoils of war, a hero's recognition, even the blessing of the gods couldn't compare to having mom, Grover, Tyson, all my other friends, and Annabeth still with me.

I fought the war for them, and they fought it for me. It wasn't a victory without them here by my side.

I opened my eyes, and a special set of stars drew my attention. The stars aligned themselves in the shape of a man. Maybe it was just my imagination, but I felt the gods purposely wanted me to see this.

"Annabeth, what's that constellation there? The one with two stars aligned and two apart?"

I was hopeless with Greek names, and my knowledge of constellations was even worse.

She let out a small giggle. "That's Perseus, Seaweed Brain." I looked at her suspiciously, checking to see if she was teasing me.

"The _other_ Perseus, dimwit! You see, he's holding Medusa's head, and that's his sword."

Annabeth continued, "Perseus had to kill Medusa too. Only then, it was kill her or die. He was a brave hero, and my mother pitied him. She gave him a special reflective shield that helped him look at her. Lord Hermes also helped by giving him a new blade, and winged sandals like … well… like the pair Luke gave us."

An awkward silence followed. Neither of us talked about Luke very much since that day up on Olympus. Deep down, I harbored doubts that Annabeth only viewed Luke as a brother. That one summer we spent with him at Camp, I remember her constantly blushing in his presence, and letting him capture the flag.

Maybe she didn't want to admit it when I was there. Maybe she only loved me because Luke was gone.

Annabeth and I were together for two years, starting the day Kronos was defeated. I loved her so much, but the last couple of months we didn't really talk much. She was so busy with her plans to rebuild Olympus, plans which I couldn't help her with.

"Annabeth, I hope… well… I hope you're happy." I choked.

She rolled on top of me and put her face right up against mine.

"I love you, Percy Jackson." She kissed me full on the lips, and my doubts disappeared as I kissed her back passionately.

We stayed on the rock well past midnight, lapping up the pleasant sounds of the forest, and the crash of waves on the shore. I knew love could be complicated, but I wasn't expecting what happened next.

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Quick note/Mythology lesson:

In Percy Jackson and the Olympians, the Greek hero Heracles is incorrectly named Hercules. This is one of my biggest gripes with the PJO series and many other works based on Greek Mythology. Hercules is the Roman name of Heracles, and since the series uses Greek names, they should really call him by his Greek name - Heracles. I'm sorry if it caused some confusion to people who have already read the story. The thing is, there's a cute little story to explain why he's called Heracles.

He was originally named Alcides but once they realized Hera hated him, they renamed him HERAcles to try and appease her. His name means "Glory of Hera." It didn't work of course, but that's the story, and my reasoning for why he should be called Heracles rather than Hercules. The Roman name of Hera is Juno by the way so I have no idea why Hercules is named the way he is by the Romans.

Don't forget to Comment/Review!

Also, if you've got a request or question, post a review or send me a PM, and I'll be more than happy to give you a reply.

I have also made a forum for the story. It has a comprehensive recap and some nice little hints for future chapters. There's a link on my profile. Do check it out if you have some time.


	2. The Fury of Percy Jackson

I said I'd get this chapter up within week, but I'm an eager little puppy and here's the next chapter after only 1 day!

Next chapter will be up soon. I think this one might take a bit longer (maybe 2 days) but I guarantee within a week.

Update 03/01/2010: I added a bit about Mrs. O'Leary and Blackjack. I completely forgot about them, and they're great.

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**Chapter 2**

**The Fury of Percy Jackson**

He was tall, around my age, with burly arms and a handsome face. His dark hair was swept to one side and he had steely, but not unkind brown eyes.

His name was Matt Shields.

Whoever came up with the idea that all Hephaestus kids were ugly was sorely mistaken. Some people around Camp were even calling him the next Beckendorf.

Like all Hephaestus kids, he was skilled with his hands and he could make just about anything with a piece of iron. Everyone seemed to get along with him, and he was introduced to loud cheers at the lunchtime camp fire. Even Mr. D seemed to take some interest by announcing his name correctly!

I had to take the swords class that day as a senior counselor, so I didn't see Annabeth until the afternoon. I was usually tired after teaching, but I thought a quick chat wouldn't hurt, so I walked off towards the dining area.

I found her sitting cross-legged by the camp fire, but she wasn't alone. She was deep in conversation with Matt Shields. I took a step back in surprise.

"You can't build the city of the gods with iron, it'll crumble. The foundations need to be made of something a bit more durable like Titanium. I'm sure with the budget of the gods you'll be able to find some. Titanium is also a lot more malleable. See here? You could extend this bit…" he gestured towards one of Annabeth's plans for the rebuilding of Olympus.

"Thanks Matt. I've been pretty much doing this whole thing on my own, and it's great to finally have someone I can talk to about this stuff." She beamed at him gratefully.

All the doubts that were washed away the night before poked their way forward again. I didn't understand why after two years with Annabeth, I suddenly felt uneasy when she was talking to another guy. I felt like things were different. I didn't know why, but my emotions were a mess.

Why was I crying by the lake? Why did I feel so envious of Matt?

I trudged up to the fire and said "Hey Annabeth," making a point not to address Matt.

"Hey Seaweed Brain," Annabeth and Matt both stood up.

"Umm this is Matt. He's new here."

"Hi," I grunted and he returned with a friendly, "Hello you must be Percy." He offered his hand.

I felt a bit guilty for being rude to Matt, so I shook his hand and smiled.

"Umm… Can I speak to Annabeth for a minute?" Matt nodded and headed over to the forges.

Annabeth must have picked up on my cagey look, "We were just talking." She held up one of her plans.

"He says I'm a great architect and that if I coordinated the angle here, and linked this section using Pythagorean Theorems, I would get…" She blushed when she realized I had lost her already.

"Hey uh, how was the Swords Class?"

"Fine," I stammered. "It's uh… good seeing you." I turned to leave but Annabeth grabbed my hand.

"Hey are you sure you're OK?" her eyebrows creased in a worried expression. "Last night on the beach y-"

I forced a smile. "I'm fine, Wise Girl," but I could tell she didn't buy it.

"Get some sleep, maybe you'll feel better then."

"Yeah, maybe," I mumbled as I let go of her hand and stalked back to my cabin.

The next five days progressed rather uneventfully. I only saw Annabeth alone in the morning for sword practise. Mr. D seemed to have purposely split us up because we never had an activity together.

On the other hand, Matt seemed to be with Annabeth almost constantly. A horrible pang of jealousy would creep up my heart every time I heard Annabeth laugh at one of his jokes, or speak really fast about her love of architecture.

I tried to talk to her a few times after dinner, but she would only poke her head around the door and say, "Not tonight Seaweed Brain. Matt had this great idea about … and I'm already behind schedule and …" She'd give me a quick kiss, and then would disappear back into her cabin to pore over Daedalus' laptop again.

For the first time at Camp since the war, I felt lonely and excluded. During the day, I would find time to go and play with Mrs. O'Leary – my pet Hellhound. She was always happy to see me, and would lick my face so enthusiastically that I usually ended up slimier than Laistrygonian spit.

Mrs. O'Leary was rather large, so when we played fetch the straw dummy, I had to be careful that I didn't send her towards a group of people, or she'd bowl them over.

I also went to visit Blackjack, the Pegasus that I had befriended on the _Princess Andromeda _- Luke's ship - five years ago. He would fly me over the Canoe Lake and chatter about horsey things. He still called me _boss_, which I secretly liked, and would sometimes even invite some of his Pegasi friends to fly with us.

I enjoyed the company of my beastly friends, but what I really longed for was the company of people. I twiddled with my new seeing fountain at night, and occasionally Iris Messaged Tyson. He couldn't speak often because he was busy leading the other Cyclopes in the underwater workshops.

It did make me feel a bit better though knowing that he was okay. Grover also relayed some news about finding a new wild spot, and that he would be going to investigate. The truth was I couldn't wait until Friday for...

Capture the Flag.

Since there were so many new campers, Capture the Flag was even more competitive than before. I was really psyched because I was teamed with Annabeth and the Athena cabin. Unfortunately, Matt and the Hephaestus cabin were on our side too.

Chiron led the way to a clearing near the forest, "Heroes!" he yelled.

"For the benefit of all new campers, the rules are as follows…" I wondered how many times he's had to say those same rules over the last three thousand years. Immortality must get rather dull.

I walked alongside Annabeth as we went to our positions.

She was telling Matt the rules again. "That's our banner there, the one with the Owl. We can't let them take it at all costs. Their banner is on the other side of the forest."

Matt grinned and said "so who attacks and who defends?" Annabeth smiled in return.

"Tell you what, since this is your first game, I'll defend and you can lead our attack! Percy, you don't mind staying back to help me right?"

I stared down at my feet disappointedly. I never liked staying back to defend, especially after my dip in the Styx. In battle, I felt like a completely different person - a fearsome warrior who could never be defeated…

"Yeah sure," I said abjectly as I planted our banner in an open spot near some pine trees.

A few moments later, a horn sounded and I heard war cries fade away as the battle started in the forest. It was dark, and I couldn't see anything that was going on past our base. Annabeth was walking around our banner whispering under her breath: "bad location… too open… the distraction might not work."

"Er… Annabeth?" I asked impatiently. "Shush! We won't be able to hear them if you keep talking. We already can't see them very well."

I was getting really annoyed. She always seemed to have time to talk to Matt, yet I was always just an interruption.

"Why did you make me stay back to defend? I implored with barely concealed anger. "You know I'm the best fighter here!"

Annabeth scowled and turned towards me. "Do you want us to win or not? I've got it all worked out. Matt sa-"

"I don't give a toss what Matt said!" I huffed. "You're always listening to his ideas. What about mine? I'm just supposed to be some obedient hellhound you can command huh?"

She stared at me, momentarily in shock. Pain flickered in her eyes for a split second before fury replaced it. "Maybe if you had something useful to say I'd listen to you!" she shouted.

I yelled back, "Last time you tried this tactic, it didn't work! What if-"

She interrupted harshly, "What if… what? Do you have a better idea?

"The battle's already started and we can't change the plan now."

I was getting really mad now.

"Let's see your new buddy Matt bring the flag back then eh? Do you really think a newbie like him will be able to get past the likes of Clarisse? She'll eat him and our whole attack group single-handedly."

I stormed off into the forest leaving Annabeth's angry retorts on the wind. I ran into some young Hermes kids, but I was in no mood to fight. I just wanted this damn game over with. I swatted their blades away and rushed towards the opponent's flag.

Nearby, a couple of Apollo kids were scrapping against the children of Demeter. Their blades clashed loudly, and I felt my heart race at double speed. A couple of Nemesis kids bravely blocked my path, but I was in full battle mode now. A cool sense of purpose took over, and I defeated all of them quickly. Up ahead, I saw the Ares banner wavering in the moonlight.

I charged straight at it, oblivious to everything around me. Just as I was lifting the banner up, I heard a hiss behind me.

"You're going down punk!" Clarisse and four of her siblings leapt on me, and I fought hard to shake them off.

"That Hephaestus brat, he sure knows a smart girl when he sees one," Clarisse taunted between blows. I swung my blade recklessly at her, but she ducked and carried on, "I saw him and ANNNAAABETH all cozy by the fire last night…"

"EEERARRRRHH," I bellowed. A wave of energy burst from my body. The Ares kids were all blown back, but I wasn't done yet. I rushed after them clouded by rage, all thoughts of the game abandoned. A few seconds later, a loud horn blared in the distance. I caught my breath by the river's edge as the Ares kids scurried to safety.

The game had ended.

We had lost.

I charged back to my cabin seething. What the Hades was going on! I kicked a small chest of seashells into the seeing fountain, which splashed water all over the floor. I leapt onto my bed, burying my face in the pillows, convinced that I could just sink and disappear like in water.

Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse, a very scared looking Grover appeared in an Iris Message.

"Percy come quick we need your help! Scylla! We're not going to make it. Get us some help, PLEASE!"


	3. An Unexpected Hero

Here's the next part! It's a bit shorter, but I wanted to really focus on this special bit. Thanks for reading so far!

**Comment/Review PLEASE**

Next chapter will be released within a week (but probably earlier.)

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**Chapter 3**

**An Unexpected Hero**

I stared at the blue wallpaper of my cabin for a whole minute before I realized that Grover was gone. All anger and frustration momentarily forgotten, I sprang out of bed. On my way out the door, I grabbed my watch-shield and snatched a handful of Drachmas from my bedside desk.

I considered telling Annabeth as I walked past the other cabins, but thought better of it. I realized I was still mad at her for what happened at Capture the Flag. A jealous rage bubbled under my skin as I remembered Matt Shields.

_What was wrong with me_?!

As I approached the boundaries of Camp, I whistled loudly. Blackjack emerged from the shadows within seconds, the beat of his wings gradually softening until he landed beside me.

_Yo Boss! D'you need a hand?_ Blackjack spoke in my mind.

"Can you take me to the Sea Of Monsters?" I said out loud.

Blackjack whinnied uncomfortably._ I can't get you all the way in. You have to go past Scylla and Charybdis if you want to enter. There's no other way.  
_  
"Okay then, take me to the bay. I'll make my own way from there," I replied. 

Just as I was climbing onto Blackjack's back, a soft voice startled me from behind: "Going somewhere?"

I whipped around pulling Riptide out of my pocket.

It was Mr. D.

How did he always seem to know when I was sneaking out?

Grape vines wrapped around Blackjack's legs, pinning him to the ground. It was the situation on the Chrysler building all over again, only this time, I had a feeling I wasn't going to get off as easily.

I lowered my blade and addressed him as evenly as I could, "Mr. D, Sir."

He was wearing his usual leopard-sprint Hawaiian shirt and purple shorts. His messy, black hair flopped across his scowling face as his bloodshot eyes analyzed me like a laser. "Heroes… Always breaking the rules..." he sneered.

"What do you want from me this time?" I asked impatiently.

Dionysus clicked his fingers and a glass of wine appeared in his hand. "You're almost of age Patrick. Wine is a most delicate and wonderful thing." He took a sip and smirked as I struggled to free Blackjack from the vines. "You know, I've got to hand it to you. You have proved me wrong a few times Peter-"

"Look" I snapped angrily, "I've got to go help my friend. He's in danger. Let Blackjack go now!"

Blackjack neighed angrily. A wicked fire lit up in Dionysus' eyes. "Help a friend? Explain to me then why your 'friend' in Cabin Six is crying her eyes out."

I opened my mouth but couldn't say anything. Annabeth was crying and here I was charging off into the wild without even a goodbye.

I swallowed hard and said as bravely as I could, "Mr. D, could you… watch her for me while I'm away. Make sure she doesn't do anything stupid."

Dionysus chuckled evilly. "So let me get this straight. I'm supposed to just let you go and on top of that, look after your poor sweetheart until you get back?"

I looked down at my feet prepared to accept a humiliating return to Camp.

"I'll do it."

"What?" I gasped in surprise. "On one condition," Dionysus' eyes fixed upon me like an eagle eyeing its prey, "convince my father to let me go from this insufferable place by the Winter Solstice."

My heart fell.

Zeus would never change his mind about letting Dionysus go. Dionysus fought in the war, received serious injuries, yet still was pardoned only fifty years from his sentence.

"You are a favorite of the gods Jackson. If anyone can help me return to my wife on Olympus, you can." I could tell he was serious.

"How am I supposed to do that?" I pleaded desperately, conscious of the fact that every second I wasted put Grover in more danger.

Dionysus sighed.

"A hero can do anything he sets his mind to. Look how far I've gotten."

"Wait… _You_ were a hero? But you're a god! People worship you and… and…" I was absolutely shocked. All these years I'd known him, Dionysus had shown no interest in any of the half-bloods at Camp. In fact, I was sure he hated some of them like me. Now he was telling me that he was once one of us?

"My mother was a mortal woman. Her name was Selene. My father fell in love with her and she was pregnant with a child – me. But she died before I was born. Hera tricked her into asking my father to reveal his true form. She made him swear on the Styx. She was incinerated on the spot." Dionysus had a look of genuine regret etched on his face as he told the story.

For the first time ever, I actually felt a bit sorry for him, "How did you survive?"

"My father took me from the burnt remains of my mother and sewed me into his thigh. I was born on Olympus and brought up here. Camp Half-Blood was in Greece then, but Chiron was still there. He was and still is a great teacher. He's the only reason I don't turn half the kids here mad."

"Why do you hate us half-bloods so much? Can't you see what we have to go through to survive?"

Dionysus scoffed, "I suppose you think you've had a difficult life? Half-bloods now have it so easy and yet their arrogance knows no bounds. They think they deserve special gifts from their parents or special rights. I lost my mother before birth and I had no one who cared for me." Dionysus looked bitterly at the ground where poison ivy started to grow.

"How did you become a god if you were born only a half-blood?" I asked tentatively, hoping to change the subject away from modern demi-gods.

"The same way you were offered immortality. The gods recognized my way with the vine and honored me with immortality. Unlike that pesky overrated hero-turned-god Heracles, I made a name for myself as a respectable god. Now I'm one of the twelve most powerful Olympians and I even managed to save my mother from the Underworld."

He waved his hand towards the sky and a small constellation brightened up. "That's her there, my mother Selene."

I looked down at the newly grown poison ivy in shame. All along I had thought Dionysus was just a spoilt god who got by on his father's coattails. I was painfully aware of the time but I had to make sure of one thing.

"What if I can't do it? What if I can't convince your father to let you go?"

Dionysus narrowed his eyes, "You won't come back to Camp while I'm in charge. Either you relinquish me of this responsibility, or say goodbye to your precious Camp Half-Blood for the next fifty years."

A few seconds passed in silence as I considered what to do. Dionysus prodded me hard on the chest, "Are you going to go then or do I have to drag you back to the Camp in vines?"

I gulped nervously.

Grover needed me and I was not going to leave him. I'd just have to hope that I could do something worthy of reward from the gods along the way.

"Yeah I'll do it," I said resignedly.

Dionysus nodded and the grape vines wrapped around Blackjack's legs fell away. As Blackjack readied for takeoff, Dionysus studied me warily, "I hold you to your oath, hero."

"And I to yours. Take care of Annabeth, make sure she doesn't come to any harm," I replied.

I raised my right arm to the heavens, "Fly, Blackjack!"

Blackjack galloped a few meters before he spread his wings. The heavy whoosh of air that followed filled my ears, but I still heard a loud popping noise behind me. As I looked back, Dionysus disappeared in a purple flash leaving his trademark scent of grapes.

The poison ivy and grape vines remained on the ground snaking towards a clump of bushes nearby. In a few years, Camp Half-Blood would be able to sell more than strawberries, I thought to myself.

I turned away from Camp but my thoughts lingered on a certain hero-turned-god who had achieved more than I could ever have imagined.


	4. Horsey Companions

Hey guys! I think I'll settle on chapters around this length from now on, 1,400 - 2000 words seems about the right length.

Thanks for reading. Next chapter will be up in a few days.

**Remember to Comment/Review! I'd really appreciate some more reviews.**

I'm also writing a Percabeth oneshot. It's funny - you'll see! I'll keep you updated.

Update: Big thanks to Ninjawriter11 for helping me tighten my grammar. **  
**

* * *

**Chapter 4**

**Horsey Companions**

Five years ago, Annabeth, Tyson and I, set off on a quest to the Sea of Monsters to retrieve the Golden Fleece and save Grover. The Sea of Monsters was a legendary archipelago where dozens of monsters and magical creatures lived. Its entrance was guarded by two deadly monsters: Scylla and Charybdis.

Scylla had six long heads that could snap up all passing sailors. Her body consisted of twelve tentacle-like legs, a cat's tail, with another six ferocious dog heads on its waist. Charybdis was a huge formless creature that had only one mouth, but with rows of sharp teeth and flippers. The danger with Charybdis was that she could create enormous whirlpools that would sink ships.

To save Grover, we had to get past Scylla and Charybdis, defeat Polyphemus -- the most powerful of all the Cyclopes -- and overcome many nautical perils. Now, I was heading back on a similar quest.

What was it with Grover and getting lost at sea?

Last time he went to the Sea of Monsters, he had one foot in Hades and was nearly forced to "marry" a ghastly Cyclops. Why he would want to return was completely beyond me.

I was worried about having to get by those two monsters again. Last time, I barely survived and had to rely on a magical thermos of wind to blow me to safety. This time, I had nothing but Riptide and the curse of Achilles to help me.

"Percy come quick, we need your help! Scylla!" Grover's words from the Iris Message were clear. He was at the Sea of Monsters and I had to go and rescue him.

At about 4:00 am somewhere over North Carolina, I fell asleep on Blackjack's back. The air was freezing, and there was a strong wind, but I was just too tired to keep my eyes open. As the soothing darkness of sleep took hold, I was suddenly hurled into the middle of an intense sea battle.

_Grover clung to the mast of a large ship. Or what was left of it. Around him, wood nymphs and satyrs desperately tried to fight off Scylla, who was picking them off one by one. Reed pipes in hand, the satyrs tried to grow vines to ensnare Scylla but the boat was rocking too much from the whirlpools created by Charybdis. _

_Woodland magic required full concentration and a lot of energy. The satyrs had neither. _

_Vines began to wrap around Scylla's tail but came up short. Meanwhile, the wood nymphs were hard at work trying to repair the ship. They sang calming songs and I saw the broken hull of the ship mend itself with new wood. _

_But they were sucked too far into the whirlpool. _

_For every tiny bit of hull they managed to repair, a large rent would appear on the other side of the ship. Grover yelled above the horrible sucking noise of the whirlpool. _

_"Everybody take cover! We might still make it!" _

_Grover closed his eyes and took out his reed pipe. He began to play a sad mournful song. Creepers extended in all directions, hauling satyrs and wood nymphs to safety. Grover trembled with the exhaustion of such a powerful spell. _

_Just as he was reeling in one last wood nymph from the clutches of Scylla, he collapsed, hanging limply from the mast. The ship wasn't going to hold. The prow was already going under into Charybdis' maw. _

_They weren't going to make it._

My eyes flew open and I gripped Blackjack's neck tightly.

_Yo, Boss are you alright?_ Blackjack said in my mind.

"Grover, you know, the Satyr? He's in serious trouble. Can you fly any faster?" I urged.

Blackjack dipped his wings and caught a newer, faster air current. _I'm guessing we won't be stopping off at Monster Donut today either… _Blackjack said jokingly, hoping to raise my spirits.

Up ahead there was nothing but sea. My mind drifted back to Camp. Annabeth. I just couldn't get her out of my head. Several emotions flooded through me one by one.

Love, Regret, Passion, Jealousy, Loneliness, Anger, Love again.

I couldn't believe how strong these feelings were. I gripped Blackjack even tighter as I realized I was flying away from her. But I was here to help Grover. Annabeth would be fine without me, really.

Dionysus said he'd take care of her. If I was going to save Grover, I needed all my concentration. Scylla and Charybdis were waiting.

"Annabeth," my heart sang. It was hopeless. I couldn't ignore it.

I saw her face again in my mind. Her grey eyes were dazzling, her smooth tan skin and smatter of freckles were just divine. Her lips were full and soft, I wanted to kiss her so much. She looked, somehow, even more beautiful in my mind. I felt like I was going to fall over from the intensity of the love I had for her…

_Dude cut it out!_ Blackjack yelled in my mind. The vision disappeared immediately much to my despair.

I was back on a Pegasus flying at high speed towards two deadly monsters.

"Sorry, I was just a bit uh…"

_In love much?_ Blackjack snorted.

"I… uh… let's focus on getting to the Sea of Monsters. 30 degrees, 31 minutes north, 75 degrees, 12 minutes west. You got that Blackjack?"

_Nope. We have our own navigation techniques Boss. We don't need co-ordinates. I hope you're ready though, Boss. Those two monsters aren't going to give you a free pass. We're nearly there. I'll drop you off at the nearest pier. Rainbow and some of his Hippocampi friends will take you the rest of the way._

I frowned, deep in thought. I didn't have any plans to defeat the two monsters. If only Annabeth was here. She had a plan for everything and…

_Hold on a minute!_ W_hy was I always thinking about her?_

I forced myself to think of Manticores, Dracaenae, Laistrygonians and other nasty monsters. I thought of how I managed to defeat each of them. The memories gave me strength and courage. No monster had defeated me yet, so why would these two be any different?

Blackjack took a big dive a few minutes later, and a small pier came into focus. "Thanks! Blackjack," I said gratefully.

_No problem Boss. Next time though, you're taking me to the Monster Donut shop or no more free rides!_ Blackjack grunted.

"You're on! In fact, I'll get you a chocolate dipped caramel donut with extra toppings," I said with a grin.

Blackjack whickered happily as he landed smoothly on the pier. Rainbow, the Hippocampus, and two of his kin, were already waiting in the water nearby. Their white bodies shimmered beautifully as the bright rays of a newly rising sun warmed them.

Rainbow jumped out of the water as I approached. His scales sparkled and his rainbow colored tail fin flicked from side to side in delight.

_Great day for a swim, Lord,_ Rainbow said in my mind.

I realized it was quite a gift being able to speak to horses. Pegasi and Hippocampi helped get me out of sticky spots more times than I can remember in the war.

"Good morning Rainbow. I hope you're ready to go, because we really have to hurry," I said.

_Hop aboard. I'll be glad to take you,_ Rainbow said.

I gave Blackjack an affectionate pat and tickled his snout. "Take care of yourself Blackjack. I'll be back… uh… soon," I said feebly.

The truth was, I didn't know how long I'd be gone or if I'd even come back.

_See you later Boss. _And Blackjack deftly took to the skies.

I turned to Rainbow and the other two Hippocampi, "It will be dangerous getting through. You guys," I directed my voice at the accompanying Hippocampi, "don't have to come if you don't want to."

The other two Hippocampi neighed indignantly. _We're coming. We're not going to back out and leave you or Rainbow alone._

I smiled appreciatively and jumped into the water after the Hippocampi. I felt a new wave of strength and energy as my body entered the water.

I was at home here.

Rainbow swam up to me and I got on his back.

"Let's go," I said once I was comfortable.

The three Hippocampi shook their heads and swept their powerful fins. Before long, we were cutting through the water effortlessly, headed to the Sea of Monsters and Grover.


	5. Between a Monster and a Hard Place

Here's the next chapter. This one was the hardest one I've had to write so far. I've probably re-read it about 100 times trying to clean up the sentences, and making sure my grammar is perfect (there are probably still mistakes...) I'll leave a footer too so I don't spoil the contents of this chapter before you've even read it.

Enjoy it!

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**Between a Monster and a Hard Place**

It was a beautiful morning and the water glittered enticingly. A part of me just wanted to float on the sea and feel the warmth of the sun on my cheeks. I thought of Grover: his engaging smile, his fascination with nature and most of all, our enduring friendship.

A few minutes later, all thoughts of friendship and good weather were cruelly washed away. A gigantic whirlpool rose from the water and steep cliffs appeared out of nowhere. The Hippocampi slowed to a stop just out of range of the two monsters, waiting for my command.

Last time on the _CSS Birmingham_ with Clarisse, we decided to fight Charybdis, and that didn't go too well. Clarisse shot cannon balls at the monster, but it simply ate them all and destroyed our ship. If heavy artillery was no match against the strength of Charybdis, I didn't stand a chance.

I put my hands underwater and said a quick prayer to my father. A pulse of clear energy filled my mind and body as I drew strength from the water.

"Swim for Scylla," I said aloud.

The Hippocampi lurched uncomfortably, but eventually shot towards Scylla. The monster eyed me eagerly, all six heads turned, and I saw rows and rows of razor-sharp teeth. I uncapped Riptide, the Celestial Bronze gleaming in the sunlight, and pointed the blade directly at Scylla.

Just as we got in range of her long heads, I shouted "Dive!" and the Hippocampi obeyed as Scylla took its first swipe at us.

We barely avoided the jaws of the monster, and on our dive down I realized there was no way I was going to beat Scylla from the water. She had extremely long necks and could pick us off with ease from above -- I had to beat her on the cliffs.

When we were ten meters underwater, I came up with a plan.

"Hey guys, can you swim in a circle as fast as you can?" I asked. The Hippocampi hesitated for a split-second, and then did as I said. I let go of Rainbow as he joined the other two Hippocampi swirling underneath me. I took a deep breath and steadied my pounding heart.

"NOW!" I yelled, torpedoing out of the water with the combined force of my own strength and the underwater vortex of the Hippocampi. Scylla was caught completely by surprise. Three of her heads snapped at me, but all of them fell short.

Just as I was reaching the peak of my jump, I angled towards a small outcropping on the cliffs. I landed heavily, but rolled quickly out of the way as Scylla's numerous heads lunged at me.

The cliff was incredibly steep, and there was barely any space to stand on. Scylla was a few meters away on a large platform, which gave her a great vantage point for attacks. There were a few smaller ledges leading towards her, and I leapt precariously between them to get closer.

Her heads were a constant threat, and several times I was almost eaten. Being invincible is hardly an advantage if you got swallowed whole. When I was within five meters of Scylla's main platform, I heard a deep rumbling noise from above. I glanced upwards quickly and what I saw scared me to Tartarus and back.

There were massive boulders hurtling down the precipice, probably a result of Scylla's repeated attacks. I pressed my back against the cliff-face, bracing myself for what was to come. The thunder of heavy rocks grew louder, and I caught a glimpse of Scylla cackling evilly. And then the rocks hit.

It felt as if the world had collapsed on me. The rocks shattered on contact with my skin, leaving my body physically unharmed. However, every fiber of my being screamed out in protest. I couldn't think about anything except the intense pain, as my survival instincts kicked in. The rocks had destroyed the platform I was standing on, leaving only a tiny handhold that I had wedged my fingers into before the crash.

I hung on desperately as the rocks plummeted to the sea below with a mighty splash. I was in a dreadful position: my back was exposed to the monster and my feet hung a hundred feet off the ground. The only good thing was that Riptide was still with me. I slammed the blade into the crevice of the cliff, pushing off the rock face with my hands and feet. A terrified scream left my lungs as I landed right on top of Scylla's vicious dog heads. Luckily, their bites couldn't hurt me and I was pushed backwards onto my feet. I had made it onto Scylla's main platform.

I activated Tyson's watch-shield immediately, and began circling the beast cautiously. Scylla's long necks, which were advantages before, were almost useless in close proximity. She tried to bend down and attack me, but her necks were too long, and she nearly fell off the platform herself. However, it was difficult to move her, and I didn't have a sword. Riptide would re-appear in my pocket, but not right away.

Meanwhile, the six dog heads on Scylla's waist snapped angrily as she approached, aided by her long tentacle-like legs, which would occasionally lash out and attempt to drag me into her clutches. Slowly, I was getting edged closer and closer off the platform. I needed to act quickly before it was too late. Scylla leered nastily, her cat's tail swishing back and forth as she slithered and crawled towards me. All of a sudden, I had an idea.

I found the sunniest spot on the platform and held my shield up to the light. Tyson's compulsive polishing of the shield really did have more than aesthetic use. Sunlight reflected off the shield straight into all of Scylla's' eyes. In her rage, she charged blindly towards me. I sidestepped her tentacles as we neared the edge, and in one quick movement, honed by countless hours of reflex training, I slipped behind her and grabbed her cat's tail.

Scylla relied on her tail for balance, so she flailed and twisted in an attempt to shake me off. Her long necks were contorting at all sorts of horrible angles to try and free herself as I struggled to hold on. I waited until we were as close to the edge as possible, then threw her whole body off the platform with all my strength. She made a hideous screeching noise as she tumbled off the platform, thrashing in all directions. However, the sheer weight of the beast carried my momentum forwards, and I followed her off the edge.

'''''''''''''''

I tasted sand, salt water and seaweed. _Seaweed Brain,_ that was what Annabeth called me. I could feel the brush of water on my skin: soft, refreshing, rejuvenating. I heard the grass whistle, the waves burble, and the winds blowing me a tune. Nature was singing me a song. I slowly opened my eyes. It was night, but I instinctively knew this was not a place I should fear. Stars adorned the sky in a dazzling display of luminance.

Each star lit a fire in my heart, a tiny sparkle of hope and happiness. Nearby, a bright light grew in strength. My tired eyes shut against the glare, but I heard voices in the distance.

"Is that?"

"It can't be…"

I opened my eyes one more time and saw the outline of two figures approaching. One was a man, but with goat legs and small horns on his head. The other was a woman, slender of build, but with a glow of radiance and warmth. I felt their hands close around my limp body and I was glad.

"Hey Percy, it's me, Grover."

"Welcome back to Ogygia, brave one," said a gentle voice.

* * *

This is the first battle scene I've ever written, and it was hard.  
Not that much to say, but all will be revealed next chapter - which should be released within a week.  
I have a pretty big plan for this story as I have said before, and it's looking like it could be somewhere between 30 and 35 chapters.  
I will write a few oneshots as an aside to the main story (which can get pretty heavy.)  
I've nearly completed my first oneshot, so keep an eye out!

**Please leave a Comment/****Review.****  
I know you've read it, so tell me what you think!**


	6. Wild Places

Hi again!  
I'd just like to say thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far. It makes writing this story much more worth it when people come up and say nice or helpful things.  
Just keep reviewing, and I promise I'll deliver a story like you've never read before!

* * *

**Chapter 6**

**Wild Places**

The Cave of Life. That was what I called it the last time I was here. Vibrant crystal formations glittered on the cave walls – red, gold, blue. The colors were different from last time, but just as beautiful. I lay on the comfortable feather pillows of my bed, taking in the pleasant aroma of dried herbs. I couldn't identify them any better, but I still reveled in their soothing scent.

I closed my eyes and listened to the waves flowing onto the beach nearby. I was so at ease here. There was no anger, no conflict, no pain. I felt revived as all my aggressive emotions were swept away by the tide.

I heard somebody approaching the cave. The footsteps were soft on the earth, as if the person was walking on water. I curled up and pretended to be asleep. Calypso glided into the cave and bent over my sleeping face. I could feel her warm breath on my cheeks and I could almost imagine her radiant smile as she looked down at me. She turned around and left the cave a few moments later. I felt emptier without her.

After a few more minutes, I became restless and got out of bed. The same polished bronze mirror stood next to the bed. I turned to face it. Messy black hair, sea-green eyes, lean body… same old me. I felt tired again but resisted the temptation to get back into bed. Instead, I walked outside into the bright sunshine.

It was a warm day, and I felt my limbs relax. A cool breeze whipped my hair to one side and the air carried a mouth-watering trace of beef stew. I drifted towards the smell, entering a luscious green meadow. Flowers bloomed in wild colors everywhere I looked. I saw roses in several different hues, daisies that glittered in the sunlight and countless other brightly colored flowers which I couldn't name. I wandered through the meadow, entranced by the allure of the flowers, until I followed the scent of beef stew into a small glade.

In the middle of the glade, Grover sat cooking in front of a small fire. He sprinkled a few sweet-smelling herbs into a large pot and looked up as I approached, a smile spreading across his face.

"You're awake," he said warmly. I nodded and sat down quietly beside him.

"Thanks for coming for me. I didn't think I'd find it, but I guess I have," he said.

"Find what?" I asked.

"This place, Ogygia," he said.

"Why would you want to come here?" I said, with a look of confusion.

Grover bent down and stirred the pot. "Wild places," he said simply.

I looked around me and suddenly understood what he meant. Ogygia must be one of the most beautiful places left on earth. A paradise. As a Lord of the Wild, Grover was tasked with finding and protecting all the remaining wild places in the world.

"Here, have some of this," Grover said, handing me a bowl of the newly cooked beef stew.

I took the bowl and helped myself to a small bite. It was divine.

"Wow, did you make this?" I asked Grover, scooping up another mouthful.

"No, Calypso made it. She just went to get some more herbs," he said dreamily.

I guess I wasn't the only one smitten with Calypso.

"What happened to the other people on your ship?" I asked after a few more bites of the delicious stew.

Grover looked down sadly at his bowl. "I don't know," he said. "It was bad. Charybdis had our boat. I tried to save them, but I was too weak," Grover continued mournfully, "I blacked out, and the next thing I knew, I was here, on the beach." I gave him a consoling pat on the back.

"They'll be okay," I said as reassuringly as I could.

"I hope so…" Grover murmured as he spooned the last of the stew into his mouth.

"What about you?" he asked somberly.

I told him what happened from the moment I got his Iris Message. I didn't tell him about Annabeth. I felt a huge pang of guilt as I thought about her being back at camp, not knowing where I was, or when I would come back.

"How long have we been here?" I asked Grover after I finished re-telling my story.

"I honestly don't know," he said. "This place has a strange magic. I can feel it in the forest and on the wind, a sort of timelessness."

"I know," I replied as I thought back to my first stay on Ogygia. Two weeks I was here. It felt as if those two weeks were both the longest and the shortest of my life.

"This isn't the first time you've been here, is it?" Grover said, searchingly.

"No," I admitted, "Last time –"

I was interrupted from my thoughts as Calypso floated into the glade holding a bag of mixed herbs. She wore a flowing light-pink dress and her caramel-colored hair was braided over one shoulder. Her gentle almond eyes fell on me as she walked over to us.

"I thought I would never see you again," she said as she bent down to deposit the herbs in a small jar next to the fire. I fidgeted nervously as she sealed the jar.

"Your friend Grover here," Calypso smiled at Grover, "has been of great assistance to me." He blushed and got up.

"I, uh… will be on the beach," he said awkwardly, walking out of sight.

Calypso brushed a small strand of hair from her face as she sat down beside me. I wanted to say something, but everything I thought of saying seemed so feeble. She smiled understandingly and I felt the tension in my shoulders fade away.

"Things have changed," she said, her voice soft and melodic.

"I, uh… wanted to say thanks for helping me," I stammered before I lost my nerve.

Calypso turned and looked at me, her eyes conveying a mixed message of hurt and happiness. "You'll always be welcome here, young hero," Calypso said.

My eyes met hers and I felt an overwhelming feeling of gratitude. She didn't need to help me, but she had healed me and cared for me – twice. I tried to tell her how much it meant to me, but she turned away before I could.

"Rest," she said, picking up an empty bag. "There will be time for talk later." She gave me a furtive smile and drifted off into the forest.

I sat by the fire for a few moments, unsure of what to do. I had thought quite a lot about returning to Ogygia, but now that I was here, I wasn't sure what I wanted from it. Peace? An escape? Calypso? I couldn't sit still for long, so I took my thoughts with me as I walked out onto the beach.

Grover was standing by the water's edge playing on his reed pipes. It struck me just how much he had improved. Long gone were the days when he couldn't play anything but _Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 12_ and _Hilary Duff's "So Yesterday." _

"Hey G-Man," I said, walking up to him.

"Hey Percy," Grover said. "Where's Calypso?" he asked with a touch of longing.

"Uh… I don't know," I said, pausing for a second. "What are we going to do now?"

Grover put his reed pipes away and turned to me.

"There are things I've got to do."

"What things?"

"I'm a Lord of the Wild, Percy. It's my job to find and protect wild places. The Council of Cloven Elders expects a full report on the status of the wild. I've got to tell them what types of flowers grow here, what the state of the land is, and whether or not it needs special protection."

"What about your friends on the ship?"

Grover looked sadly out at sea. "I can't help them. I'm just one little satyr stuck on an island," he said dolefully.

I grabbed his arm and turned him towards me. "You're not just any satyr, Grover," I said firmly.  
"You're my best friend. The bravest satyr I've ever known."

He smiled gratefully at me. "It would be a waste if I left now. You don't have to stay if you don't want to, but I've got to finish my report on the island," he said. I looked up at the forest as a bright ray of sunlight reflected off the treetops.

"I'll stay for a while," I said with a smile.

* * *

Next chapter will be from Annabeth's POV. It'll be a bit of a challenge writing from Annabeth's POV. In my opinion, not many stories around have really captured Annabeth's psyche well. I'm worried I may not be able to either. I'm going to give this next chapter a bit of time, so maybe a week this time rather than the usual 3-4 days. It'll be a bit longer too (maybe 2000 - 2500 words.) Hope you guys can wait until then!

If you want to read more stuff, I've written a light-hearted oneshot. It's about Percy going to prom and it's quite funny. Check out my profile to take a look.

Thanks for sticking with this story so far. It'll pick up a bit soon, I promise!**  
**


	7. The Dilemmas of Annabeth Chase

Here's the next chapter!

I'm sorry it's taken so long, but I've really taken some time to make this chapter good. It's also very long (about a 1/3 of my entire story so far). All the Greek Myths I mention are real (well, made up by some guy thousands of years ago), I did not make them up.

It's been a real challenge writing from Annabeth's POV, but I'm very pleased with how it's come out.

I'd also like to say a quick thanks to NinjaWriter11 a.k.a Tora, who's my beta-reader.  
This chapter would not have been half as good without her input.

* * *

**Chapter 7**

**The Dilemmas of Annabeth Chase**

**Annabeth's POV**

Thalia's pine stood forlornly at the edge of camp. I watched as a small streak of red from the fading sun fell on its branches.

He had not come back.

I turned quickly away from camp. This was not supposed to happen. I wiped away a tiny tear from the corner of my eye. "It will be alright,"I said to myself softly. As I walked down Half-Blood Hill, I replayed the events of the last two weeks again… 

'''''''''''''''

_The Sacred Rock_

I held his hand as he guided me down to the Canoe Lake. I noticed the boat house nearby. It was shoddily built and the foundations were weak. If the dock was rebuilt with steel girders…

Percy turned to face me and I instantly forgot about steel girders and foundations.

"What is it Seaweed Brain?" I said. I was hopelessly lost in his magnificent sea-green eyes and dark hair. I smiled at him as he fumbled with his own thoughts.

"I missed you," he said.

I felt my heart skip a beat. Thankfully, the rational side of my mind took over and I managed to say: "I missed you too."

He leaned closer and we kissed. I saw a long aisle. There were flowers, friends and a familiar salty taste on my lips…

I pulled away in surprise. There was no aisle, but the salty taste remained. They were his tears. He rarely cries, but I did not think it was odd at the time. I felt his tears sliding down my face, rivers of warm love, as I hugged him tightly. As his hand closed around mine, all logical thoughts were replaced by a nervous excitement at his touch. We set off down the beach together.

_Together_. That was the beauty of love, I thought to myself as we lay down on a big rock. I called it Omphalos; in Greek, it means _The Sacred Rock_. Zeus used the original Omphalos as a marker for the "center" or "navel" of the world. I liked to think that Percy and I were at the center of everything.

We talked for a short while and the conversation eventually turned to Luke. Two years had passed since Luke died, and I had finally made peace with his memory. I told Percy the truth up on Mount Olympus. Luke took me under his wing when I was seven. I looked up to him as a brother, a father even. He was my first real friend. His death was a bitter blow to take, especially since he was tied to everything in my life for the four years of the war. I feared losing him so much because I was so scared of being alone.

I thought I had no friends, nobody who cared about me. I was wrong. Percy had left camp against the rules to rescue me from the roof of the world. He had risked his life several times to save me. It took me a while to work it out, but Percy was the rock in my life now.

I looked up at the stars glowing brightly in the night sky. I thought about them: huge masses of fire and energy sizzling hundreds of miles away.

"I love you Percy Jackson," I said.

The words seemed weak, inadequate. For the longest time, the logical half of me insisted that love was just a made up emotion. You did not just love; it was a buildup of lots of other feelings – friendship, passion, trust, lust. Percy had changed all that. As we lay on the rock in each other's arms, I felt something just _click. _In that moment, I realized how blessed I was to have love, and I never wanted to let it go.

'''''''''''''''

_Straw Dummies_

I was angry. I was sad. I was lonely. I was a lot of things my rational mind could not control. I threw a book at the wall of my cabin; the loud thump it made only riled me even more. I crumpled on my bed as hot tears streamed down my face. My hands coiled tightly around the bed sheets as my breathing stuttered erratically.

I thought of numbers, of formulas, of absolutes, of things that would never change, but I could not keep those sea-green eyes out of my head. I saw the doubt, the anger and the shifting looks of pain in his eyes that I did not want to see. Where had it all gone wrong? One moment I had it, the next moment, I felt love sliding away from me like a slippery eel.

_I'm just supposed to be some obedient hellhound you can command huh?_

Percy's venomous words hit me like a tempest and I felt a massive surge of anger and guilt. I wanted to push him out of my mind, but a part of me just couldn't let him go. 

_Talk to him_, my logical mind instructed. I could see myself walking over to his cabin, his apologetic smile as he let me in, I started to take a step… but I could not go any further. This argument was his fault. He was the one who should apologize. I turned stubbornly in my bed as the sun rose quietly in the east. 

My worst fears were realized the next day. I stood at the sword practice area for an hour as I waited for him. A straw dummy hung loosely nearby like a scarecrow on a corn field. I lashed out furiously, severing one of its arms, as large clumps of hay scattered across the floor. 

_You're not to blame,_ my rational side coaxed_. He left. He stormed off. He started the argument._ I buried my knife in the dummy's midriff as sweat dripped from my brow. _This was not the end_, I tried to convince myself. Things could be repaired, bridges rebuilt, trust regained. 

_Thump, thump_, my pounding heart was having none of it. There were only extremes - love and hate. I stormed off to my cabin with barely concealed rage. Outside, the head of the straw dummy rolled to the ground. 

'''''''''''''''

_Rachel_

Rachel arrived at camp the next morning. My anger had subsided overnight and I was getting worried for Percy. Rachel looked as good as ever, her red hair billowing behind her as she walked up to me, a friendly smile on her face. 

"Hi Annabeth, where's Percy?"

I bit my lip, trying to feign a smile. "He's… uh… not here."

Rachel walked closer and put her hand on my arm. "You two haven't been fighting, have you?"

I forced myself to look into her green eyes. She was the Oracle of Delphi, I reminded myself. Traces of her gift filtered through from time to time, so it was no use lying to her. 

"Yeah," I croaked. 

She gave me a quick hug and I was grateful for her touch. She put her hands on my shoulders as she said: "It will work out." 

A big part of me wished it was a prophecy, but Rachel appeared as normal as ever. 

"You can come to my place if you want to talk or if you need anything," she said sincerely as she walked to her special hut near the Big House. 

I vowed right then and there that I wouldn't go to her for help unless it was really necessary.

'''''''''''''''

_Trapped_

After two days, I became extremely anxious. Percy did not tell me where he went, and for some reason, I was not having dreams about him like I usually do. I was due at Olympus after camp to present my blueprints, but I had lost all interest in my work the moment he left. 

I had already tried Iris Messaging, but I couldn't get through to him. I also called his mom, Sally, to ask whether he went home or not, but she thought he was at camp too. I made up a hasty story to say he was okay so that Sally wouldn't worry unnecessarily. 

After that, I decided that things had gone on too long. I packed a small backpack with some ambrosia, nectar and a handful of drachmas. 

It was forbidden to leave camp without consent, but I didn't care. I had to go and find him. As I neared the camp boundaries, Peleus, the usually docile dragon guard, reared up and sent a large ball of fire at me. I ducked and tried to weave past him, but he was too fast. I drew my knife threateningly, but before I could make another move, grapevines lashed me to the ground and the knife flew out of my hand. Dionysus stood behind me with a wicked grin on his face. 

"Well, well, well," he crowed. "Nobody's allowed to leave camp without permission. Isn't that right Andy-Bell?" 

I glared defiantly at him as he stroked Peleus' neck. 

"Go back to your little sculptures or whatever it is that you spoiled brats do." 

The grapevines loosened around me. I considered making a run for it, but Dionysus was watching me very closely. It would not do to incite the wrath of a god. I picked up my knife irritably and stalked back to camp. 

I tried to leave several times that week. I tried to leave at night. I tried to leave with my invisible Yankees cap on, I even tried to leave on a Pegasus, but I did not succeed. 

Dionysus was always there to thwart my escape. The only unusual thing was that he didn't punish me harshly. I was given extra chores after dinner or asked to clean the stables, but I wasn't made to do anything dangerous. 

Some campers in the past had been punished much more severely for smaller offenses. _Dionysus must be getting soft_, I thought, but it didn't do much to help my mood. Every failed escape attempt made me more and more frustrated. I didn't care about my work rebuilding Olympus any more. I dedicated every waking minute to working out a way to outsmart a god. 

After my sixth failed attempt to escape, Chiron called me over after Dionysus had given me inspection duty for the whole week. I skulked over to him dejectedly, expecting another tongue lashing.

"Annabeth," Chiron said sadly. I looked up at him, his dark green eyes impossible to read from thousands of years of experience. "How many blueprints have you completed for the rebuilding of Olympus?" he asked. 

I looked down at my feet. I hadn't done anything since Percy left. I spent one day sulking, and the next seven days worrying. "I… still have to do some more," I said awkwardly. 

"Mr. D has caught you trying to leave camp many times now." Chiron continued, "I don't know why, but he seems very determined to keep you here this year. It took me a long time, but I managed to cut you a deal. You can leave here in one week to go to Olympus and deliver your blueprints early. You must finish them by then or Mr. D won't let you leave until camp is over." 

I smiled appreciatively and thanked Chiron for his help. As I walked back to my cabin, a frown quickly replaced my cheery smile. I had one week to finish all my blueprints.

'''''''''''''''

_Matt Shields_

For the next week, I crowded my thoughts with details and plans for the rebuilding of Olympus. I was determined to leave early. Percy could be in trouble somewhere and I would do anything to get him back. 

I didn't take Rachel's hospitable offer, and would only occasionally say something to her in passing. I felt kind of bad, but I was totally focused on finishing my blueprints. 

The only person I really talked to was Matt Shields. I asked him about everything from parallel support beams to Corinthian architecture. He knew almost as much as I did about architecture and probably even more about building materials. I came to him often for advice, which he was always willing to give. I liked him, but I kept my distance. I just wanted to finish those blueprints so I could find out where Percy had gone. Our relationship was strictly professional until the night before I was scheduled to leave.

We were sitting by the camp fire after dinner discussing the last blueprint, the courtyards of Olympus.

"This bit here," Matt pointed to one of my plans, "could be shaped like a drachma, and some trees in that corner would make the wood-nymphs very happy."

"Thank you, Matt. I'd never be able to finish without you." I gave him an appreciative smile as I rolled up my plans. I was so relieved to have finished everything. I was tired, but my heart leapt up and down at the thought of finding Percy. 

I was just about to return to my cabin when Matt said: "Annabeth, we're having a party at the Hephaestus cabin tomorrow night. It's to celebrate my first summer at Camp. I was wondering if you'd like to come." 

I considered for a moment and turned towards him. "I can't," I said flatly. "It's just that… I'm… uh…" I tailed off mid-sentence as I realized that I was probably leaving camp for good. 

"Oh, okay," Matt said disappointedly, his black hair falling across his face loosely. He turned around and started walking towards the forges, but I reached out and touched his arm. He swiveled in surprise as I walked closer to him. 

"Uh, I like you, Matt," I said stupidly. "Things have been kind of complicated lately and…"

The rest of my sentence was muffled as he brought me into a fierce kiss. I instinctively whipped out my knife and held the Celestial bronze up to his throat.

He withdrew clumsily and I pushed him back a little further. We stood across the camp fire, two meters apart, in stunned silence. The flames crackled loudly, acting as a sort of barrier between us. I lowered my knife in bewilderment and turned away first, running back to my cabin without another glance. 

'''''''''''''''

_Vows of a Virgin Goddess_

_A daughter of Athena and son of Hephaestus_, I should have seen it coming. 

Approximately two thousand years ago, Hephaestus fell in love with Athena when she came to his forge for weapons. Athena rebuffed his advances because she had already made her chastity vow. 

One day, Hephaestus could not control his lust for her, and while Athena was lucky to get away still a virgin, a baby was born from the encounter as Hephaestus' seed fell on Gaia. Erichthonius, a little- known god, was born. 

Athena raised the child as a foster-mother and grew fond of motherhood. It did not, however, put her on good terms with Hephaestus, and by extension, Aphrodite. So history was repeating itself. 

I did not sleep that night. I could feel Matt's lips on mine, warm but almost metallic. I shook my hair in agitation as the memory flooded my senses. I thought guiltily of Percy, wherever he was. There was something I had to do before leaving.

'''''''''''''''

_The Prophecy_

The hut, or more formally, the Temple of the Oracle, was built in tribute to the original Temple of Apollo at Delphi. Thousands of years ago, Zeus released two birds flying in opposite directions to try and find the centre of the world. The birds met up at Delphi, the home of the Oracle. 

Rachel's hut was situated right next to the Big House in the middle of Camp. It was built in imitation of Doric order, one of the three organizational systems of Ancient Greek architecture. The walls of the hut were painted to look like stone columns and there was a plate above the door with a blazing orange sun, the symbol of Apollo.

I walked up to the hut and knocked nervously on the sturdy oak door. She opened it, still in her red nightdress, and smiled as she let me in. 

"I was wondering when you'd come over," she said. I felt a bit uncomfortable at that. She knew I would come over. 

The hut was quite spacious considering Rachel was the only one living in it. I had to share my cabin with my half-siblings, so I never had a big room to myself at Camp. 

There were candles and sweet smelling incense hung on the walls, and a small hearth sat in the corner of the room. The flames it cast gave the room a reddish glow. 

Rachel sat on her four-poster bed and beckoned me to join her. I sat down next to her as she held up a piece of paper. 

"I've always been bad at trigonometry," Rachel said unabashedly. I stared blankly at her and then picked up the piece of paper – and realized it was math homework. 

"Can you help me with it please?" she asked. 

I sighed and picked up a pen. For the next few minutes, I taught Rachel about sine and cosine rules. When I walked into Rachel's hut, I did not know what to expect, but I never thought I would be discussing trigonometry.

When we finally finished going through the paper, Rachel got up and sat by the fire. 

"Thanks, Annabeth," she said. "It was kind of rude of me to just ask for your help like that, but I really needed to finish that."

I smiled timidly. "Rachel, I want to ask you something."

She turned to face me, green eyes glimmering eagerly. "Ask away."

I hesitated; I wasn't sure how to phrase this correctly. "It's about Percy."

Rachel's expression softened and she adopted a more gentle tone of voice. 

"He's been gone a long time. Why haven't you been looking for him?"

"I've tried to leave several times, but Mr. D didn't let me," I said miserably. "I made a deal with him that I could leave and go up to Olympus today to deliver my blueprints."

Rachel's gaze intensified. "This isn't about the blueprints. You're going on a quest," she said. 

It wasn't a question. I nodded tensely as Rachel got up and walked back towards her bed. I felt really uncomfortable saying this but I had to know something. 

"What is my destiny?" I just said it, right out loud. 

I half expected Rachel to turn around with a sarcastic smile and say: "How the Hades am I supposed to know?" but instead, the room's temperature suddenly fell ten degrees and the usual warm reddish glow of the cabin was replaced by a green mist.

Rachel turned around, her eyes blazing a fierce green. She stood very tall and straight as she started speaking. I felt like a small child being punished for misbehaving in her presence. Her voice was loud and clear, but she spoke in an ethereal tone that both intrigued and frightened me.

_"A test awaits that you cannot pass,  
divine intervention and ocean mass.  
Friends of heroes bravely unite,  
powerless to stop pain's sharp bite.  
Love will fight your darkest fears,  
but end up trapped in bitter tears."_

As soon as she finished the last words, the hut returned to its original cozy state. Rachel dropped to her knees in a daze as the flames from the hearth lit up again and warmed the room. 

"What happened?" Rachel asked. 

"I can't remember all of it," I replied uneasily. 

I helped Rachel to her feet and lay her down on the bed. Rachel smiled and murmured a soft, "Thank you." 

As I was heading out the door, Rachel called after me. "Stay safe, Annabeth."

"I'll try," I said but I couldn't suppress a shudder that ran the length of my body as I headed out of the hut into the sunlight.

'''''''''''''''

_A test awaits that you cannot pass, _I repeated the words of the prophecy to myself one more time. 

The sun dwindled on the horizon as Camp Half-Blood disappeared from view. I stomped down to the road where I was to be picked up and driven back into the city. Rachel's prophecy reverberated in my mind again. I was completely consumed by the words and what they could mean. 

_Powerless to stop pain's sharp bite_. 

Argus waited patiently in the strawberry delivery van as I approached, all of his one hundred eyes studying me guardedly. 

"Take me to the Empire State Building," I said, as I closed the door firmly behind me.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed it! I feel it's the best chapter I've written so far, but it's also the one I'd most like feedback for.

Please leave a **Comment/Review**

The next chapter should be released within a few days. The story continues from Percy's POV on Ogygia.**  
**

Thanks for reading and be sure to check back for the next chapter!


	8. Finding Argo

For the first time, I haven't managed to upload a chapter within a week!

This chapter was quite difficult to write, but I think I did a decent job. I've written a long footer (which contains some spoilers), so you can read more about all the other stuff I've got to say later.

Enjoy it!

* * *

**Chapter 8**

**Finding Argo**

"Fraxinus ornus," Grover said.

"What?" I said in confusion.

"It's more commonly known as an ash tree," Grover replied. "Dryads, tree nymphs, used to live in the Manna-ash trees of ancient Greece. They were called the Meliae, born from the blood of Uranus –"

I failed to suppress a giggle and Grover punched me in the arm.

"Ow!" I cried out, but I was more concerned about not bursting out laughing.

"That joke is so old!" Grover said indignantly. "Anyway, the Meliae were special because they raised Zeus when he was a child. They fed him honey and goat's milk. The ash tree is sacred to Zeus."

I looked up at the healthy green leaves on its highest branches. I could tell that it was a deciduous tree, which means that it loses its leaves every winter. Grover taught me about that a while ago.

Time seemed to pass by in a blur on Ogygia. Grover was writing a detailed report on the state of nature on Ogygia. Every day I would go with Grover around the island to look at the various plants and trees. I always had respect for nature, but with Grover and Calypso for company, I started to really fall in love with it.

Every plant and tree had a story, a history, and I was stunned to find out how little I really did know about nature.

A wave of clean sea air carried across the wind. I inhaled contentedly as my gaze wandered to the next plant, a bright red flower with soft petals.

"What is it?" I asked Grover.

"Anemone coronaria," Grover said. "It's called an anemone."

"I thought they grew in the water, like the ones in _Finding Nemo."_

Grover rolled his eyes, "Those are _sea_ anemones, trust a son of Poseidon to think everything came from the water…"

"Hey, it's true though. The first ever non-immortal living things were sea creatures. We all started as tiny things in the sea!"

"You're forgetting that there is no such thing as evolution, Percy. The gods just create or change whatever they want. Why do you think the human race hasn't changed in a thousand years? Butterflies change color within months for camouflage because the gods feel sorry for them."

I didn't know what to say to that so I turned my attention to the beautiful red flower in front of me. I knelt down to take a closer look. Tiny drops of dew laced its petals, giving the impression that the flower was crying.

Grover knelt down beside me and spoke in a soft voice, "This particular flower has a bloody past.

"Aphrodite had a young lover called Adonis. He was apparently the best looking man in the world. Both Aphrodite and Persephone loved him, but he chose Aphrodite. She was still going out with Ares back then, and he didn't like it. He turned into a boar and gored Adonis to death. Aphrodite was heart-broken and made these flowers, anemones, grow from his blood. That's why the petals are red."

I brushed the tiny droplets of water off the flower petals then turned around and headed down towards the beach. Grover followed behind me, writing notes as he walked.

"How long do you think this report is going to take?" I asked as we left the forest.

"I don't know, man," Grover said. "This island is bigger than I thought."

We walked down the beach as the sun reached its peak above us. The clear white sand reflected the sunlight so strongly that I became temporarily blind.

"Let's eat here," I said, finding a shaded spot nearer the forest.

Grover was still busy describing the state of the ash trees as I laid out our picnic mat and took out our packed lunches. We lit a fire and ate our delicious meal of beans, fruit, apple cider and some of Calypso's trademark beef stew. I watched as the waves lapped rhythmically onto the beach, the light blue water sparkling enticingly in front of us.

"Hey, do you want to go for a swim after this?" I said excitedly.

"I'm not a very good swimmer," Grover said.

I stretched out and put my hands behind my head as I lay on the warm sand.

"It's okay, we'll just play around," I said casually before curling up for a short nap.

'''''''''''''''

An hour later, I stripped down to my pants and plunged into the crystal clear water. The water wrapped itself around me like a cool blanket. I felt my body get a fresh burst of energy as I swam.

After a few minutes of swimming, I tried to create shapes from the water. I was able to make a rainbow shaped arch easily enough, but a sail boat was too difficult for me, and it ended up looking like a hippocampus without a nose.

Grover was watching me higher up on the beach.

I suddenly had a devilish idea.

I dove underwater and focused on creating a large fountain of water. The column of liquid swirled overhead and I directed it at Grover.

"Oi!" he squealed as he barely avoided the attack.

I grinned and continued sending jets of water at him.

"Come on G-Man, you can't run forever!"

I finally got him when he tried to make a run for the forest. I curved a water jet to block off his escape and drenched him from head to foot.

"That's it!" he yelled as he charged down the beach towards me.

'''''''''''''''

We played about in the water for hours. I let Grover catch me a few times and we wrestled and splashed water at each other.

Apollo was finishing his daily journey across the sky when we finally packed up our things and headed back to Calypso's cave. We were both tired, but our smiles carried us further than our legs.

"Let's walk back along the beach today," I said airily.

"Sure," Grover replied.

The sand shimmered a dark shade of orange beneath our feet, and a light breeze carried a fresh aroma of crushed pines. I felt like doing a cartwheel and jumping up and down as a strong sense of freedom flowed through me.

"Can we come back to this side of the island tomorrow?" I asked eagerly.

"Yeah, I guess. We'll come back tomorrow unless Calypso wants us to do something," Grover said.

"But Calypso has never wanted us to do anything," I said truthfully.

"Maybe she'll want us to collect some herbs or something," Grover swooned.

I looked over at him as he closed his eyes and smiled inwardly, his pale skin and wispy beard glowing orange in the sunset. The waves gushed onto the shore pleasantly.

"Grover, do you um… like Calypso?" I asked earnestly.

"Yes, Yes…" Grover said absentmindedly until he worked out what I was really asking. "Wait, you mean like _love_?"

I nodded awkwardly, already regretting asking the question.

"No," Grover said calmly. "I'm still with Juniper, remember?"

"It's just that… well… you know how our empathy link works right?"

Grover blushed but didn't flinch. "She is um… quite pretty I suppose, but I've always liked her for a different reason."

"What reason?"

"She loves nature," Grover said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I mean, most nymphs are very close to nature, but Calypso is immortal and she's had nothing but this island for thousands of years. She knows so much about growing things and her care for the plants and trees on the island is amazing."

"Yeah," I said blankly.

"You know our empathy link works both ways right?" Grover said.

I was dreading this part, but I guess I only had myself to blame.

"Do you have a thing for Calypso?" Grover asked.

"I don't know," I said truthfully. I liked Calypso a lot, but I hadn't really thought about love since I'd been on the island. Ogygia temporarily washed away any feelings that might make you feel uncomfortable.

"Come on, man," Grover chided. "I've told you my story, and we're big guys now. Well, you are. I'm thirty-four and you're eighteen, we can talk about this stuff, right?"

"I uh… like Calypso," I said shakily. "She's taken care of me twice now on this island. I mean, I owe her.

"But… I still love Annabeth," I finished despite feeling a prickly knot form in my stomach.

Grover nodded but I could tell he was unconvinced or worried about something.

"We can't afford to have another day like this," he murmured.

"What, you mean like the sort of days we've had for the last week?"

"My friends are still out there somewhere," Grover said guiltily. "I need to finish this report but after that, I'm going to find them."

I felt unexpectedly disappointed at the thought of leaving. By then, the sun had almost disappeared beneath the horizon, the last rays of light scattered across the beach.

'''''''''''''''

We continued along the beach until we were stopped by some jagged rocks on the shore. The rocks were stacked very high and were extremely sharp.

"We can't get through this way," Grover said.

"Yes we can, come on!" I said, clambering up the rocks.

I was halfway up the rock face when I looked back to see Grover stuck on a ledge further down.

"I don't want to risk it, Percy," Grover said.

"Alright, I'm coming down, hold on."

I looked down at the beach below. Hundreds of jagged rocks stuck out like barbed wire. I clambered slowly down to where Grover was.

When I finally managed to get down to his position, the sun had gone down, and it was now much more difficult to see.

"Sorry Perce, but I'm not invincible like you. We have to double back and go through the forest," Grover said bitterly.

I nodded in defeat and we climbed all the way back down to the beach.

A small pile of sand stuck out nearby so I gave it a cursory kick. Only, it wasn't sand.

"Ow!" I yelled as my foot connected with something hard.

I danced about on the beach as the pain gradually faded to a dull throb. Grover ignored me and walked straight to the sand pile.

"Percy, come here," Grover said excitedly.

I hobbled over and bent down to take a closer look. Grover rapped the mystery mound with his knuckle and it made a dull thud.

Grover brushed some sand off the top off the mound to reveal smooth wood.

"Let's dig it up!" I exclaimed as I began scrabbling at the surrounding sand.

We dug for half an hour and barely managed to move the object an inch. Whatever it was, it was big.

"Dude… we'll… never get… this thing out," Grover said in between deep breaths.

"Keep… digging…" I panted as we continued to shift the sand with our hands.

An hour passed and we still made little progress.

"Maybe we should just leave it," Grover said, flopping down on his backside.

I stared glumly at the lump of wood that we had excavated. It looked like half a coconut shell but ten times bigger. The moon shone overhead, casting a silvery light on the beach.

"No," I said through gritted teeth. "We have to try another way."

There was magic in the air; I could feel it. It was like the mist. I just knew there was something special around, and that this lump of wood was more important than it looked. The only problem was digging it up.

I sat down in the sand as the tide rose. I watched as the water carried away the excess sand we had piled up.

_That's it!_

"Grover, get out of the way!" I yelled.

He looked confused, but did as I asked and moved away from the lump of wood.

I dipped my hands in the water and focused my powers. Water surged towards the shore and sucked up sand like a toilet. I repeated the process several times until the small lump of wood was revealed as…

A ship!

It was huge but very old fashioned. It could have held maybe fifty people and was made of a special type of wood. It definitely had seen better days though. The ship was overturned and broken oars hung off its sides.

"It's a Greek galley!" Grover exclaimed. "I sailed over here in a ship like this."

We walked cautiously over to the prow of the ship to take a closer look. The prow was shaped like a woman. She had strong features, curly hair and a serious look. I realized that I had seen her face before. It was Athena.

I noticed a small engraving on the wood that read – _Argo_.

Grover's eyes widened and he launched into an overexcited speech.

"This is _the _Argo. You know the story about Jason and the Argonauts right? This is their ship! Argus, the legendary shipwright, built this ship from the wood of a sacred tree in Dodona. It was apparently designed by Athena herself. Just imagine going out to sea with the likes of Heracles, Orpheus and Peleus! Apparently, the ship could also-"

We both froze in shock as something impossible happened.

The head of Athena twitched ever so slightly and an eerie glow lit up the empty sockets of her eyes. Her mouth opened and she spoke in a commanding voice, very much like her real life counterpart.

_ "Two trapped heroes hold the key  
to unlock a battle deep at sea.  
Chains of a monster will be released,  
the wrath of a sea god not appeased.  
The tide will turn by hero's will,  
in life or death his wish fulfill."_

"- make prophecies," Grover finished weakly.

* * *

_Greek Mythology note:_

_Both the stories about the plants are accurate and the Argo really could make prophecies! The only thing I made up was that the prow of the ship was fashioned after Athena. There's no record of it, but it has been said that the ship was designed by her, so I thought it'd be logical._

No more prophecies, I promise!

I love writing them, but there won't be any more for this story. I'm thinking of writing a oneshot of Rachel at school for a day (loads of random prophecies :D) Tell me what you guys think!

Thanks for reading and remember to

**Comment/Review!**

Also, it would be nice if you signed in before posting a review. I'm very responsive to reviews, and I can't reply if you give an anonymous review.

Next chapter will continue on Ogygia. I'm guessing I'll have it up in under a week, but no, I'm not willing to swear on the styx!

* * *

Update 03/27/2010

I forgot to say thanks to NinjaWriter11, my beta reader, for her constructive criticism. She really does help me a lot.

Speaking of which, _I_ am now officially a Beta-Reader too!

I'm accepting requests at the moment, so please contact me via PM if you'd like me to beta-read for you. My beta-reader profile is on my main profile. You can also just pop in to say hi or whatever.


	9. The Essence of Love

Update: I changed the title and summary of the story. It was formerly known as **Love and all its Disguises.**

All updates are mirrored on the first chapter for reference.

As always, I have a footer at the end for author notes.

Enjoy the story!

* * *

**Chapter 9**

**The Essence of Love**

_In life or death his wish fulfill…_

I awoke with a start as the memories of last night came filtering back.

_The ship_.

_The prophecy_.

I got out of bed, washed and changed out of my night clothes, eager to start a new day.

The walls of Calypso's cave glittered red, green and gray, but I only had eyes for the white light coming from outside. I stepped out of the cave and basked momentarily in the sun's warmth.

"Percy, over here!" Grover's voice called out from a distance.

I followed the sound of his voice to a small clearing behind a hedge. Fountains of stone satyrs shot water in high arcs and small rainbows were forming as the sunlight came in contact with the water. Grover sat at a wooden table eating breakfast, his mouth full of bananas and nuts.

"Morning, G-Man," I said amiably.

"Ey… Ercy… Goo… Mo… ring," Grover said with his mouth full.

"Can I have some of that?" I asked, reaching for the small stack of fruit and nuts.

Grover handed me some macadamia nuts and an apple. I took a quick bite out of the apple – it was delicious!

"You'll want to save that," Grover said, gesturing to the apple.

I held the apple up for a closer look. It was a light shade of yellow and had an unusual glow around it.

"This- this can't be a golden apple," I said holding it up in awe.

"Golden apples make whoever eats them immortal-"

"Wait, does that mean I'm now immortal?" I said in shock.

Grover nodded solemnly.

_Di Immortales!_

I tried to regurgitate the apple, but ended up choking and coughing. Grover came over and whacked me in the back twice. When I finally came to, I rounded on him.

"You knew that was going to happen! Why did you give me that apple? Why-"

I stopped dead when I saw Grover's face.

"I didn't finish, Percy," Grover said with a grin.

"Golden apples only make someone immortal when they're fully ripe. Only the apples grown in the Garden of the Hesperides ever fully mature. The Garden is Hera's personal orchard and she blesses the apples there with unusual properties. The apple you just ate _is_ a golden apple, but it was grown on this island, so it won't ever fully mature. It still has magical properties though, acting as a weaker type of Ambrosia."

I breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Two years ago, I rejected immortality, and I did not regret my decision. Being mortal was being human, and I wanted to live and die as a human. There was also another very important reason, but I brushed that aside for the time being.

"Good morning," a melodic voice sang from over my shoulder.

I whipped around to see Calypso gliding over to our table. Her caramel colored hair swept gently from side to side as she sat down beside me and began to fill an empty pouch with some berries and fruit.

"Percy and I… are going to head down… to the other side of the island today," Grover said hesitantly.

Calypso smiled at him, her almond eyes twinkling furtively. "Actually, today, I would like to take Percy somewhere," she said smoothly, her eyes drifting to me.

"Alone," she added hastily.

"I… uh… sure," I said uncertainly, "If that's alright with you, Grover."

"Yeah, no problem," Grover said, but I could tell that he felt left out. "I'll just head down there by myself. There are still some Hellebores down that side that I haven't looked at carefully…"

He continued to mumble under his breath about a list of flowers that he still hadn't inspected as he scooped up some of the fruit from the table.

"I guess I'll see you guys tonight," Grover said with forced cheeriness as he left the table and set off towards the beach.

"We better get going too," Calypso said after Grover disappeared around the corner.

"Where are we going?"

"The top of the island," she answered mysteriously as she sealed her pouch and headed out of the clearing.

I stuffed the golden apple into my pocket and hurried after Calypso.

I wasn't sure what to make of Calypso's behavior. It was most unusual. Ever since I had returned to Ogygia, she had made little effort to talk to me, and would only occasionally smile. Today though, she seemed to have reached some sort of conclusion. There was obviously something she wanted to talk to me about too, but I guess I'd have to wait and see.

'''''''''''''''

_Aaaaaaahhhhh_, I panted loudly. For the last hour, Calypso led me up a small winding path into the forest. She walked very quickly with an effortless grace, and I struggled to keep up. She would occasionally look back to see if I was following, but she wouldn't stop long.

I finally caught up to her in front of a huge wall of foliage. Grover and I had come this way earlier in the week. There wasn't much to see up here, so we skipped down the path where there were some bright flowers. Calypso obviously knew this island better than we did, but I couldn't see any path we could take. It looked like a dead-end.

"Are you sure it's this way?" I asked skeptically.

Calypso ignored me and began to whisper some inaudible words to a nearby bush. I leaned against a tree, thoroughly perplexed at the day's events so far.

Suddenly, what I thought was a wall of impenetrable bushes and tangled vines parted to one side to reveal a staircase. The stairs led up to a higher part of the island.

Calypso gestured for me to follow her as she leapt up the stairs. I sighed and followed her wearily.

_This had better be worth it._

The path winded upwards steeply and I lost count of how many stairs I had climbed or how long it took, all I knew was that I desperately wanted to get to the top.

When I finally reached the top of the stairs, I flopped over onto my back and stared up at the blue sky.

Calypso knelt down beside me and took the half-eaten golden apple out of my pocket. "Here," she said soothingly, offering me the apple.

I took a bite and instantly felt a lot better.

"Come on, young hero," she whispered as she hauled me to my feet.

I stumbled upright and took a look at my surroundings.

We were on a small grassy plateau at the top of the island. A lonely stone bench sat off to one side of the clearing and a small ring of red flowers grew around the perimeter, glittering in the sunlight. I could see ocean beyond the flowers. A vast, blue mass that extended in every direction as far as my eyes could see.

But what really drew my attention was a gigantic crimson rose that grew in the middle of the clearing. Its many layered petals folded outwards in an alluring swirl, and a mysterious glow emanated from its centre. I drifted towards it, entranced by its beauty.

When I was a few steps closer, I saw what was in the middle of the rose.

It was a mirror.

I saw myself in the watery reflection, eyebrows creased in puzzlement. A few moments went by and the image remained the same. A small leaf glided down onto the surface of the reflective liquid, blurring my reflection for a split-second.

Suddenly, the mirror flashed a brilliant shade of gold and I found myself getting sucked into the rose.

Closer, closer, closer until my face was nearly touching the liquid…

"Percy, no!" Calypso cried as she seized my shoulders and pushed me to one side.

I fell onto my back, shook out of a trance.

I looked up at the rose again. It was still dazzlingly beautiful, but now, I noticed big gray thorns protruding from under the petals of the flower.

"What… is… that?" I asked Calypso, partly in fear and partly in awe.

"The rose of Aphrodite," Calypso said.

"The rose…of…Aphrodite," I repeated slowly. "I've never heard of it before."

"These roses are extremely rare," Calypso said. "They are the living embodiment of love."

"The living embodiment of love?" I asked stupidly.

"Eros makes his arrows from the rose," Calypso said.

"Eros… you mean Cupid?"

"Is that what they call him now?" Calypso asked openly.

"Yeah, well, that's what I grew up hearing about."

"Hmm… I remember Hermes saying that people nowadays celebrate a day of love. It's called Valentine's Day or something?"

I nodded grimly as I realized that I had not spent the last Valentine's Day with Annabeth, who had been in San Francisco.

"How does Cupid, uh… I mean, Eros, make his arrows from the rose?" I asked.

"The liquid in the middle of the flower is the essence of love," Calypso said. "Eros dips his arrows in it and they turn gold. If he shoots somebody with an arrow, they'll fall in love with the next person they meet. He has refined his technique a bit over the years. Now, golden arrows can be slightly diluted so that people won't know they're in love immediately. Aphrodite developed the mixture so that relationships have a bit more drama. Love at first sight is definitely possible though if you use enough essence."

"Wait," I said hesitantly. "Does this mean that love is just whoever Eros decides to shoot?"

Calypso smiled enigmatically. "Love is a primordial force, Percy.

"That means that it is effectively out of even the gods' control."

She continued, "Aphrodite, as the goddess of love, has certain powers over it, but even she does not control it completely. Eros' arrows work wonderfully, but they only affect people."

"There is love everywhere," she said as she bent down to pick up a small red flower. "Aphrodite and Eros only focus on special cases that draw their interest. Love works independent of the gods."

I paused for a moment in thought. Was my love for Annabeth purely the sport of Aphrodite or were we destined to be together by the designs of the universe?

"Don't worry about it too much," Calypso said quietly. "I've spent thousands of years trying to work out the true nature of love and I'm still no closer to finding an answer."

I looked up at Calypso, but her eyes were fixed forlornly on the rose.

"Why is this rose here?" I asked tentatively.

Calypso's melancholic expression changed into one of profound sadness. "For me," she murmured softly.

I stood next to her in silence, unsure of what to say. _What did she mean?_

"The rose of Aphrodite is made of _two_ substances: the essence and the spike of love," she said sadly. "These thorns are made of a deadly kind of lead. Even a small scratch is enough to rid someone of love."

I stared at the jagged gray thorns sticking out from under the flower petals. If Calypso hadn't pushed me away, I would probably have pricked myself on the thorns. The consequences of that were too horrible to even think about.

Calypso continued, "Aphrodite gave me this rose because of my curse.

"I'm fated to fall in love with every hero that sets foot on this island. She does not have any control over that, but she can ease my pain. After every hero leaves, I come up here and prick myself on the thorns. The pain and sorrow is great, but I can move on from my love."

A small tear trickled down Calypso's face as she spoke.

"Did you…" I started to ask.

"Yes," Calypso said abruptly, her voice quavering as she sat down on the stone bench in silent thought.

After a short while, she motioned for me to join her, still dabbing at her eyes with a sleeve. I sat down beside her warily.

She finally looked me in the eye as she said, "Things have changed."

I nodded cautiously, patiently waiting for her to go on.

"I've had more visitors here in the last three years than in the last three hundred," Calypso continued. "You are the first person who has ever returned. It has altered everything, given me hope."

"Hope?"

"Hope that I can break out of this spell," Calypso said. "A young hero washed up here a few years ago. I wonder if you know him.

"His name was Michael Yew."

My eyes widened in shock. Michael Yew was a half-blood son of Apollo who fell off the Williamsburg Bridge in the Battle of Manhattan. I had looked for him after the battle but could not find him. So he had washed up on Ogygia!

"Yeah I know him. What happened?"

Calypso looked out at sea momentarily. "He left," she said.

"When?"

"About a month ago. Percy, do you know if he's alright?" Calypso asked anxiously.

"No… I…"

That didn't make sense. If Michael was released a month ago, I should have seen him back at camp.

Calypso's eyes were lined with tears again. "He said he would find a way to get me off this island," she choked. "I pleaded with him not to go, but he wanted to save me so much…" she trailed off.

"He might still be alive," I said without much conviction.

Calypso looked like she had just been told that the world was going to end.

Suddenly, she leapt up and ran towards the rose of Aphrodite.

"No!" I shouted as I chased after her desperately.

She paused for an instant before the thorns of the rose and it was just enough time for me to pull her aside. She struggled a little bit before falling limp in my arms.

"This pain… I don't want to suffer any more," she whispered as tears flowed freely.

I held her tenderly, my hands running through her hair gently.

"You can't give up," I said quietly.

She nodded imperceptibly, her face still buried in my shoulder.

I took her hand and sat her down on the warm grass. Her pouch lay on the ground nearby and I scooped it up, picking out a handful of nuts and fruit.

"Eat," I said offering her the food.

She reluctantly took a strawberry and put it in her mouth. I sat down beside her and helped myself to a small chestnut. We ate in silence for a few minutes as the sun shone brightly overhead.

"Tell me about Michael," Calypso said unexpectedly.

I didn't know much about Michael, but I told her what I knew. I told her about his skills as an archer, as the lead counselor of the Apollo cabin and about what sort of person he was. Calypso listened intently, a sad smile flickering across her face occasionally. She even managed a small laugh when I told her about the argument that Michael and Clarisse had over the chariot. She probably knew all of this already, but it seemed to make her feel better, so I continued to talk.

"We should make our way back now," Calypso said after a few hours.

"Are you going to be alright?"

"I think so," she said. "Grover expects us back for dinner."

I nodded and we walked back down the stairs together as the sun dipped from its perch above us.

* * *

_Greek Mythology note:_

_Eros is the son of Aphrodite and Ares. He has two sets of arrows. Golden arrows make people fall in love, and lead arrows make people hate each other._  
_The story about the Golden Apples from the Garden of the Hesperides giving immortality is also true to myth._

However, I made up the rose of Aphrodite and the fact that Golden Apples grow on Ogygia. The plot is obviously of my own creation, so if you want to point out any loopholes or have any questions, just leave a review and I'll get back to you.

I'm progressing steadily at a chapter a week, but I can probably go a bit faster. More reviews will keep me motivated to write earlier, so if you want that next chapter, please leave a review. As a bit of extra motivation, if you leave a signed review for this chapter, I'll send you a reply to tell you what the next chapter will be about.

Finally, just another big thank you to NinjaWriter11 for beta-reading for me. Her attention to detail is an invaluable help.

**Comment/Review!**

I hope to break the 100 review mark this week!


	10. Part of the Plan

This is a short chapter.

To make up for it, I'm posting it a few days early and leaving a longer author's note at the end.

Thanks to NinjaWriter11 for beta-reading,

and also thanks to my dedicated reviewers:

glimmerof-hope  
B. D. Legan  
GoodnessGraciousTheGods

and my sisters for being the crazed fangirls they are and bugging me constantly to write.

Hope you enjoy this one!

**

* * *

Chapter 10**

**Part of the Plan**

The Empire State Building. I looked up at the towering metal behemoth, illuminated by pure white light. It was night-time, but not in New York.

The city that never sleeps.

People were scurrying around, their heads lowered in thought. There was always something to worry about, something that needed to be done.

My eyes wandered to a young woman nearby. Her curly blond hair waved smoothly behind her as she walked into the building. I followed her quietly, pausing as she asked the security guard for something.

He produced a key and she swept it up, walking straight for the elevator without a backward glance. I hurried after her but couldn't get in the lift before the doors closed.

I saw her eyes for a split-second. Stormy-grey.

Then the scene changed.

I was in a long, dimly lit corridor.

The place was damp and decrepit; fungi grew freely on the walls. A single iron-wrought door stood at the far end of the corridor. Two monsters took watch outside.

One of them had the top half of a woman, but two snake bodies for legs: a Scythian Dracaena.

The other monster had the head of a dog, but flippers for limbs and a smooth seal's body: a Telkhine.

They were talking and I inched closer to listen.

"He needsss another hero," the Dracaena rasped.

"Why?" the Telkhine replied with a bark.

"Part of the plan," the Dracaena replied with a hiss. "We sssshould tell him."

"No… no… we'll be punished."

"Not if wwweeeee bring him anottttthhhher herrrooooo…"

"It's summer. All the half-bloods are at camp."

"Not all of tttthhhem," the Dracaena said with a menacing drawl.

"What do you mean?"

"There's a giiiiiirrrlll… Sssshe went to Olympusssss. We'll take her when ssssssheee comesssss out!"

"How? We can't take a demi-god."

The Dracaena cackled wickedly, "We can't, but sssssshhhe can!"

Then everything went black.

'''''''''''''''

"We have to leave now!" I yelled as soon as I saw Grover at the breakfast table.

He looked at me in total confusion, a cherry in hand.

"Wait, wait…" he said quickly. "What's going on?"

"It's Annabeth," I babbled. "They plan on kidnapping her!"

"Who's, _they?_"

"I don't know… I heard a Dracaena… a Telkhine… but they work for someone bigger…"

"What about my report? What about Calypso?"

"There's no time! Annabeth could leave Olympus any minute and they'll-"

"Percy, what is happening?" Calypso asked, walking to the table.

I gulped loudly and turned to face her. Her gentle almond eyes were clouded by worry and I felt guilty for being the cause of her distress.

"I… I have to leave," I said as remorsefully as I could.

Her expression hardened and she struggled to keep an even face. I wanted to reach over and hug her but she withdrew.

"The boat will be waiting by the beach," she said distantly, her eyes wandering away to the forest.

Grover took a nervous bite out of his cherry and sticky red liquid trickled from the corner of his mouth.

"Are you coming?" I asked him hesitantly.

"Yeah, I guess," he said. "I haven't finished the report completely, but it should be enough. I want to find out what happened to my friends too."

Calypso turned to exit the clearing, but I tapped her on the shoulder lightly. She turned around warily, a tired, sunken look on her face.

"Thank you," I said sincerely. Her eyes drifted down to her feet while I spoke which made me feel uncomfortable.

"I promise I'll look for him," I whispered so that only she could hear. Calypso looked me in the eye and a wave of understanding passed between us.

"Don't give up," I continued softly.

She nodded and after a careless wave to Grover, headed back out into the forest, her caramel hair billowing in the wind.

"Let's go," I said to Grover and we headed out of the clearing, leaving the stone satyrs and the rainbows behind us.

'''''''''''''''

We walked in silence down to the beach as the sun blazed overhead, reminding us of what we were leaving behind.

Eventually, the warm soil of the forest gave way to the soft sand of the beach. We paused at the edge of the beach, looking out at the sea and the small boat floating nearby.

"Are you sure you want to go now?" Grover asked cautiously. "We may never come back to this place again."

I nodded grimly and stomped down the beach.

But before I could get into the water, an intense white light appeared in front of me and I shielded my eyes.

"Not so fast, young hero…"

* * *

Sorry about the cliffhanger!

I just had to put it in though, because it leads up to a huge event and I want it to be the main focus of another chapter. Be patient, I'll make sure you'll get satisfying answers!

One more thing I want to add, I don't write like Rick Riordan and I don't try to. I know that many of you would like it if I did, but I have a pretty different writing style, a more serious, descriptive tone. It may appeal to some people who like descriptive writing, but others may find it boring.

Characters can also seem out of character because I write so differently, but I'll try my best to keep them in character with the dialogue. Remember that the story is set two years after the Last Olympian, so the characters have probably matured and changed slightly. Over a long story, their behavior and emotions change all the time especially since this story is centred so heavily on the whims of love. Please cut me some slack with them, at least until the story is over.

However, if there are grammatical or spelling mistakes, please point them out either in a pm or in a review. Be specific or I can't really make any meaningful changes. I want to make this story as professional as possible and your feedback here is invaluable. I've got quite a lot of help already so my writing should be fairly clean, but there's always room for improvement!

Anyways, I'm probably going to have some time to write over the next few days too, so the next chapter should be up fairly soon. Remember to favorite/alert this story if you like it so you don't miss an update!

Also, I'm a bit disappointed that I haven't made 100 reviews yet. If you like this story, please, please, please **REVIEW**. It doesn't take much to write a sentence or two.

Like the last chapter, if you leave a _signed _review for this one, I'll reply with the details for the next chapter.

Where: ?  
POV: ?  
Major Event: ?

I know you can't resist, so review!

Hope to see you again soon,

Camzy


	11. Learning by Heart

I'm so sorry that this chapter is up after almost 2 weeks!

I've been busy lately and I ran into my first serious writer's block. I really shouldn't have, because I planned in advance what I wanted to do with this chapter, but I just couldn't write it. Anyways, I struggled through for you guys, and here it is!

As always, a footer at the end will explain more stuff.

Last thing, I created a **forum** for this story! It has a recap/summary so that people who've forgotten the plot can quickly go back and read the recap to refresh their memory. Visit my profile for a direct link.

* * *

**Chapter 11**

**Learning by Heart**

**Annabeth's POV**

_Why is this damn elevator taking so long!_

I tapped my foot in irritation as the usual bland Muzak tunes played in the background.

_This is all Percy's fault!_

I put in a herculean effort to finish what should have been two months' work in one week, just so that I could find out what happened to him. He left camp without even saying goodbye and I hadn't seen him since.

I wanted answers and even the gods weren't going to deny me.

After what felt like hours, the doors opened and I crossed the newly-built floating walkway.

It was night-time, but Olympus still glowed brightly, lit by exactly one thousand two hundred torches. I looked up at the multi-tiered palaces lining the decapitated snow-top mountain. Gleaming white columned porticos and gilded terraces stood grandly out in the open. Nymphs and satyrs tended to the gardens which bloomed with olive trees and rosebushes.

I ascended the steps to the throne room carefully. The roads were still not perfect, but they were a marked improvement over the jagged mess I remembered.

When I was nearly at the top of the stairs, I was stopped by a tall man in dirty grey overalls. His right leg was held in a metal brace and he had a permanent scowl on his face.

"Well if it isn't the architect of Olympus," he said, gruffly but not unkindly.

"Lord Hephaestus," I replied politely. "You were expecting me?"

"Of course! Dionysus told me the moment you left Camp," he boomed.

_Great, _I thought. _The gods are monitoring my every move._

"Err… Can I speak to Lord Hermes please?"

Hephaestus looked offended, his eyebrows creased angrily.

"I thought you were here to help rebuild the city," he said with a dangerous edge to his voice.

"I… uh… yeah… I am. It's just that-"

"Come along then," he said, dragging me by the arm towards another part of the city.

After going down a few flights of stairs, we emerged at a large quarry with huge chunks of white marble and shiny metal littered everywhere. I saw humanlike workers hammering and grinding, lifting and carrying. The noise was deafening.

"Where are the Cyclopes?" I shouted to the smith-god.

Last time I was here, Cyclopes were in charge of the rebuilding project. Tyson was with his father, Poseidon, but some of his brothers were here, working as builders.

"They've gone back to the sea," Hephaestus answered vaguely. "These guys here are mine. Some of the best automatons I've ever made," he said proudly.

I stared nervously at the new workers, cringing as a pair of them dropped a large stone column.

"Hey! I'll have you recycled if you make any more mistakes!" he yelled at the automatons as they wisely scurried away.

"FOREMAN!" Hephaestus bellowed so loudly that I jumped.

Suddenly, what I thought was a massive block of metal moved, and I literally fell backwards from shock.

A gigantic anthropomorphic automaton rose up from the ground, twice the size of a god in regular form. A rough bronze head sat on top of its impossibly wide shoulders and its brawny body glinted from the light of the surrounding fires. Both of its hands were clasped around an extremely long metal rod, still glowing from the heat of the forge.

"This is Prototype Talos v3586 Mach II," Hephaestus announced as the giant automaton stared at me through its white, pupil-less eyes. "Say hello!"

I blinked consciously for a moment, staring up into the eyes of the robot.

"Uh… Hello Talos," I said cautiously.

"Hello Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena," it replied mechanically, its massive jaw moving smoothly to pronounce the words.

"Talos is the foreman of the operation," Hephaestus continued. "He sees that everything gets done exactly to plan, and as you can see, he helps out around the yard too."

I nodded nervously. Percy told me about his encounter with a defective Talos prototype on his journey to the Garden of the Hesperides. It killed Bianca DiAngelo, a young hunter, and nearly killed him as well. Percy and I also had a run-in with one of Hephaestus' traps and we were lucky to get out of that one in one piece too. It suffices to say, I wasn't going to trust any of his creations easily.

"Alright, enough with the introductions. Get back to work Talos!" Hephaestus yelled over the noise of the junkyard.

The metal behemoth moved off to another part of the work-site, swinging the burning metal rod loosely in one hand.

"Isn't he great?" Hephaestus said enthusiastically. "Talos v3586 mach II is only a quarter of the size of the first Talos I made, but is nearly ten times as smart!"

"Talos? Why do you always call your automatons that?"

"Because I like the name," he growled. "The first Talos is a thing of legend, even if I may say so myself. It protected the island of Europa from invaders and was very good at its job. At least, until that witch Medea destroyed it…"

He continued to ramble on about the first Talos and its fantastic workmanship, talking about it like some sort of long lost friend.

My eyes wandered to two workers who were sculpting a chunk of marble. I watched as they methodically chiseled and hammered at the rock, in the process of creating a statue.

As weird as it may seem, I missed the Cyclopes. They were more human than these robots, and I liked to think that the temple of the gods was made by hard labor rather than an automated process. Giving machines the job seemed like a cop-out.

"Hephaestus," I said to him at the first opportunity. "How can I help?"

He looked at me with a confused expression. "These automatons don't need help, missy. I've programmed them to do everything. They can even think for themselves now."

I whipped out my blueprints from my backpack and held them out in front of me.

"I worked hard on these, and now you're telling me that I wasted my time?" I asked daringly.

He shrugged his shoulders but couldn't say more because a large screeching noise came from one of his pockets.

He pulled out a small watch which rattled violently. "Late, late, late!" the watch yelled out and Hephaestus promptly dismantled it.

"I've got to go now. Very important meeting," he said hastily. "Just find Talos, he'll know what to do."

Hephaestus limped off without another word.

_That's strange_, I thought. The meeting must be rather close by if he didn't need to travel by his true form.

I forgot about that for a moment though, because the large form of Talos loomed nearby.

The giant automaton was bent over a large fire, heating up another massive metal rod. I walked over hesitantly, and finally managed to summon the courage to tap its small toe, which was as big as I was.

Talos lifted its foot up instantly, and I leapt back a few meters to avoid getting stomped on. Turning its massive head slowly, Talos looked down at me imperiously.

I held out my blueprints. "Here are the blueprints," I said meekly, not addressing the automaton directly.

It bent down lower until its eyes were only three stories above me.

"You do not wish to be here," the automaton said unexpectedly.

"I… uh…"

"Your facial muscles 42, 83 and 6 indicate discomfort, reluctance and disinterest.

"What is it that you want?" it asked directly.

I gulped uneasily, scared by the accuracy of the automaton's observation.

"Uh… here are the blueprints. Please take them and use them to rebuild the city," I said as bravely as I could.

The automaton stared at me through its pupil-less eyes, scanning me like an X-Ray. I held out the blueprints, waiting for it to do something.

Eventually, Talos lowered a huge hand and gently picked up the pieces of paper. The automaton held them for a split-second before incinerating them before my eyes!

"Hey! I didn't make copies of those!" I yelled despairingly.

"I've learnt them by heart already," Talos answered.

_By heart?_ _How could an automaton learn something by heart?_

"But what if someone else takes over the rebuilding project?"

The automaton turned back to the forge unapologetically.

"You do not wish to be here, so go where you want to go," it said with its back turned.

I stood there helplessly for a few moments until I realized that Talos was not going to say any more.

As I ran across the quarry and up the stairs leading back to the throne room, I thought about what I really wanted from this visit. What Talos said was right; I did not want to be at the quarry or to think about building.

It was my life-long dream to become an architect, and here I was, creating the blueprints for the eternal city, yet, it still felt like a secondary interest.

What I _really_ wanted was to find out what happened to Percy. I wanted to punch him for saying something silly, to kiss him when he smiled, to have his warm body up against mine…

As I ran up the last steps, I heard a loud whooshing noise coming from the throne room. The doors were flung wide open and gods spilled out in giant form. A few of them began to glow brightly and I shut my eyes quickly to avoid getting incinerated like my blueprints.

I heard someone say a few words, a bad haiku I won't share, and the unmistakable thud of a metal leg brace. I also heard angry, dissenting voices further down the hall, too far away for me to discern. However, two raspy voices that I recognized squabbled nearby.

"Lord Hermes?"

_What about us?_ the twin snakes of Hermes' Caduceus, Martha and George, said in unison.

"Annabeth, what are you doing here? I thought you were supposed to be down at the quarry?" Hermes said worriedly.

I stammered incoherently, my eyes still closed. I reached out instinctively with my hands, but grasped at thin air. I felt like a blind fool and I probably looked like one too.

_O, help the poor girl out! _George said. I could tell it was George because he had a slightly deeper voice.

"Here," Hermes said, grasping my wrist and leading me around the corner.

"Can I open my eyes now?"

"Yes, you can."

I blinked a few times until I could see the messenger god clearly. Hermes was wearing his usual training outfit and sneakers. Martha and George were curled around the Caduceus, now a long staff.

"Lord Hermes, I-"

"I know what you want to ask Annabeth, but I don't think I can give you the answers."

"What do you mean? You _must_ know where he is!"

"I know that Percy is safe…"

Martha scoffed. _Safe? The boy doesn't have a choice, he's…_

Hermes instantly shrunk the caduceus into a cell phone and shoved it back into his pocket, muffling the complaints of the mischievous snakes.

I glared at the messenger god who was obviously withholding information from me.

"Annabeth, you've got to understand. It's not my place to tell you."

"Then who can tell me?"

"Your mother."

"My mother? Where is she?"

"She's away, but she wants to talk to you when she gets back."

"What if I don't want to talk to her?"

"Then you might not get the answers you want."

"Why can't you just tell me?"

"I'm sorry, Annabeth. Wait here for your mother. If she does not tell you, I promise I will, but until then…"

_Seven-hundred missed calls, three-thousand two-hundred messages and two-hundred and fifty packages to deliver!_ Martha piped up from Hermes' pocket.

Hermes sighed.

"I'll see if I can convince your mother to return earlier, but the way things are looking…" he continued the rest of the sentence as an inaudible whisper.

"Stay safe, Annabeth," he said gravely, all trace of mischief gone from his face as he shimmered on the spot and disappeared.

* * *

Hope you guys liked it!

The next chapter will be where all the fun begins! I can't wait to write it, but I have a serious job to finish by the end of this week so I probably won't have the time to write it until Saturday so expect at least another week before it's up. I promise it'll be worth it though.

People seem to like the "Details on the next chapter," so I'll continue it. I won't give away anything in the details, just three things:

_Where the next chapter takes place_

_Whose POV it is in_

_And the major event (which I will leave deliberately vague)_

Leave a review this chapter and I'll send it to you!

As always, a thank you to NinjaWriter11 for reading through my work and offering her advice, even if it wasn't much this week, yeah, I'm talking to you!

Finally, a reminder to visit my forum which has a link on my profile. I put quite a lot of time into the recap just so that it's easier on you, my wonderful readers. I'd also appreciate some feedback or maybe some new ideas, and the forum is the easiest place to do that.

Thanks for reading, and drop a **comment/review** off before you leave!


	12. Divine Intervention

I'm really sorry for the extremely long absence! I've been busy and sick, but I guess those aren't really great excuses.

To make up for it, I've also written a **Prologue** that is now up on Chapter One. I did not think of writing one earlier because I started this story with little direction, but things have changed haven't they? It makes the rest of the story a little tighter, starts it off a little sharper, and sets up a chapter like this one. It's interesting, so do head back to check it out before reading this chapter.

As usual, I'll leave a footer. Enjoy this chapter, and I hope you get some of the answers you've been waiting for!

* * *

**Chapter 12**

**Divine Intervention**

"Not so fast, young hero…" A godly voice said.

I staggered backwards, shielding my eyes as the brilliant white light grew in intensity. "Who… are… you?" I stammered blindly.

My nose was given the first clue when an all-consuming, intoxicating perfume hit me like a blast of hot air. My hands fell away from my eyes in surprise and I blinked a few times to make sure what I saw was real. A goddess stood before me, the epitome of beauty. She wore a luxurious white dress, complemented by sleek, waist-length blond hair. Her lips curled upwards in an alluring smile, and her eyes gleamed with a depth and beauty that defied description.

It was Aphrodite.

"It's uh… you," I said dumbly.

Aphrodite just smiled a little more. There was something slightly unnerving about it.

"We're uh… kind of in a hurry," Grover gulped from my side. I realized that I had totally forgotten that he was there or that we were going to leave the island.

"Can't we talk for just a little bit?" she said smoothly, giving me a playful wink.

"Um…" I started to say.

"Let's go somewhere shadier; I don't want to over tan," Aphrodite interrupted, running a hand through her silky hair.

I looked over at Grover, but he was just as confused as I was. This couldn't be good, but to refuse could have even worse consequences.

"Er… okay," I said shakily, but Aphrodite was already halfway up the beach, her white dress sweeping up a small cloud of sand behind her.

Grover and I hurried after her and found ourselves back at our favorite picnic area. "This place is nice," Aphrodite crooned, indicating for us to join her. I always felt like I was being told what to do in the presence of a god.

We sat down opposite the goddess of love, watching warily as she whipped out a large mirror and dabbed at the corner of her eyes lightly. "So what's this I hear about the two of you leaving?" Aphrodite said from behind her mirror.

Grover subtly gestured for me to answer. "We're going to help our friends," I replied.

"Friends? Friends or lovers?" Aphrodite said with a mischievous smile as she put away her mirror.

"Uh…" I stuttered, but Aphrodite leapt in before I could continue. "It's love. I can see it on your faces."

"Do you know where Annabeth is?" I asked anxiously.

"Oh yes," Aphrodite said. "She's been awfully worried about you."

"What about Juniper?" Grover interrupted.

"Who?" Aphrodite said brusquely.

"Hey!" I snapped, but Grover put a hand on my shoulder. "Let it go man," he whispered.

"Oh, that tree nymph," Aphrodite exclaimed like she just remembered that she left the stove on. "She's boring and clingy," the goddess said capriciously.

I felt a surge of anger from Grover.

"You didn't answer my question. Is Annabeth at camp?" I asked, keeping my voice level.

"Camp, mm… " Aphrodite said. "I trust that you met Matt Shields then?"

"Uh… yeah…" I answered unsurely.

Aphrodite smirked. "He was a gift from my husband."

"What?" I asked, not sure I heard her properly.

"Who is this guy?" Grover muttered from beside me, but I didn't bother to answer.

Aphrodite fluttered her eyelashes deviously. "Hephaestus built him. He called Matt a 'Salted Smith' but was displeased with the results. Said he was too flawed, too human. Luckily though, I stopped him before he could dismantle the poor thing."

"You mean… Matt is… an automaton?" I said incredulously.

Aphrodite waved her hands irritably. "Humans may be flawed, but that's why I love them. What fun would a perfect couple be? Hephaestus has no idea what a masterpiece Matt is!" she exclaimed.

I gripped a fistful of sand. "You're lying," I snarled.

"Why would I?" Aphrodite said sickeningly sweetly.

"What else have you been messing with?" I asked, fearing the answer.

"You needed a bit of a push, but I didn't do anything else!" she replied.

"Don't you dare mess with Annabeth!" I said angrily.

"It wouldn't be fun if I did. It would be like playing tea party with dolls. It's so much more exciting this way!" she said callously.

I looked at the goddess, her face suddenly resembling Annabeth's, but more hauntingly beautiful. _This is all a setup_, I thought to myself as I forcibly turned away from Aphrodite. _She wants me to stay here._

"Come on, Grover, let's go," I said in an undertone, dragging the confused satyr behind me as I stalked down the beach.

"Aren't you going to say goodbye?" the goddess cried out from behind us.

I walked a little faster, gripping Grover's wrist tightly, eyes only on the boat moored out at sea. Aphrodite giggled loudly but made no move to stop us. When I turned around a second later, she was gone. _Good,_ I thought. _Once we get back, I'll find Annabeth and tell her the truth. Aphrodite is not going to have everything her way._

I led Grover towards the boat, invigorated by the cool, refreshing water all around me. "Baaa… Percy, can you uh… keep me dry?" Grover bleated as the water became waist deep.

"Uh… sure," I said distractedly, focusing my energy underwater to create a dry bubble around Grover.

"Thanks," he mumbled.

We finally got to the boat - a plain raft made of ten-foot long wooden logs and a tiny white sail, and pushed off away from the island. The sky was clear and crisp, but my thoughts were more like thunder than blue sky. I tried to forget what Aphrodite said - that I was manipulated and used like a character in a soap opera - but I couldn't. Next to me, I sensed Grover's uneasiness.

"What happened to you and Annabeth back at Camp?" Grover asked quietly when Ogygia had dipped out of sight.

I sighed and my shoulders sagged, a fitting reflection of my hopes, emotions and feelings.

"It's alright Percy," Grover said. "We'll be back soon and then everything will be fine."

"I wish that were true, G-Man," I said dejectedly. "We had a stupid argument at Capture the Flag. I was really angry… I don't know… it's that guy, I mean automaton, Aphrodite was talking about… He was uh... never mind… Thing is, I just left and didn't tell her."

"What if this is all Aphrodite's fault?" Grover inquired.

"How could it be though?" I said glumly.

"Maybe she spiked your drink or something," he said thoughtfully.

"Maybe…"

"Percy, do you know where you're going?" Grover asked after a few minutes of awkward silence.

"Yeah," I said impatiently. "We're going to Camp Half-Blood. Calypso said this raft will take us anywhere we want to go."

"What's that then?" Grover said, pointing to a miniscule jut of land way out in the distance.

"We're here I guess," I said bluntly, getting slightly nervous at the thought of telling Annabeth what happened.

But as the land approached, we realized something was wrong. It was not Camp Half-Blood.

"I thought you said you knew where you were going," Grover said disappointedly.

"I… uh…" I was lost for words. My nautical senses confirmed the direction of the raft, yet, this place…

"Oh my gods!" I cried as I realized where we were headed. "You were right Grover. She planned _everything_. I bet she knew this would happen, that's why she didn't stop us at the beach. I swear she'll never get away with this!" I yelled as my anger spilled over. The sun shone fiercely overhead, blinding me as I looked up to the heavens in despair.

We were back at Ogygia.

* * *

No real Greek Mythology this chapter because my description of Aphrodite was based loosely on Rick Riordan's. It was a bit tricky writing about her because canon offered so little. I hope I've done at least a half-decent job. As always, leave a review if you have some constructive criticism.

Lastly, I'm discontinuing the 'details on the next chapter' for logistics sake. I can't be online all the time to send it to people. Instead, I'll post the details over at my **Forum** (which has received a whopping 1 view over the last 2 months!). It's more like an information hub than a forum, and I've put some time and effort into it, so go check it out. There's a link on my profile.

Thanks for reading.

Comments, Reviews and CC are welcome. Flames not so much, but I'd rather get a bad review than none at all!


	13. The Olive Tree Mosaic

I'm really sorry for the extremely long time between chapters. Three weeks is way too long to make you guys wait. I promise I'll make more of an effort for the next chapter.

It gives me great pleasure knowing that you've taken time to read something I've written, and I appreciate all the nice things that have been said in reviews and that so many of you have added this story to your favorites and subscriptions.

This week, I'd also like to extend a personal thank you to Mercury_Gray, who is my new beta reader and helped me with this chapter. Her professionalism and insightful input has been incredibly valuable.

* * *

**Chapter 13**

**The Olive Tree Mosaic**

**Annabeth's POV**

"Talos, can I come down now?" I shouted loudly. I'd spent all day overseeing the work site from the top of a rather tall marble column, and while I couldn't fault the view, it was getting late and I was exhausted.

"Yes, Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena," the giant automaton answered from somewhere below me.

I sighed and looked out at the junkyard of the gods, lit by the fading sun. Marble pillars, lumps of iron and bits of debris littered the work site. I could see a statue of Apollo being completed by two human-sized automatons, chiseling away with mechanical efficiency. A large forge billowing smoke was situated at the far side of the yard. I could just make out an automaton hammering a chunk of iron into a circular shape. It was probably a piece of Aphrodite's next tiara.

Suddenly, the pillar that I was standing on started to shake and I fell on all fours. "Talos, what's happening?" I yelled in alarm as I heard a cracking noise. _Uh-Oh!_

I lay flat on my stomach and braced myself as the large pillar slowly crumbled to the ground, chips of marble flying everywhere. When the noise finally dissipated, I was at ground level, surrounded by a ring of debris, the remains of my lookout pillar.

"I meant only _me_, not the whole pillar…" I grumbled, dusting down my orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt and jeans.

Talos knelt on one knee, clutching an enormous hammer. The weapon must have weighed as much as a ship, but the automaton swung it around like a lollipop stick. He moved closer and trained a beady eye on me.

"I am sorry for causing you discomfort," it said flatly.

"It's fine…" I started to say before getting a brilliant idea. "You can make it up to me by building a new lookout pillar, and… and… a new desk for the Athena cabin!"

"Yes, Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena," it replied in a monotone.

"Call me Genius_,_" I shot back sardonically.

"Yes, Genius," the automaton intoned.

"You may go," I said, grinning cheekily as I gestured towards the forges.

Talos lumbered off, creating a minor earthquake with every step. I smiled inwardly as I watched the metal behemoth settle down at the far side of the quarry. Talos had done everything I asked of it - well, everything it could interpret correctly. It was learning slowly and steadily, much like how the last week had passed.

I spent most of the time supervising construction with Talos, but my thoughts were elsewhere. I constantly thought of Percy and about my mother's forthcoming visit. Hermes popped in a few times, but was always very vague with his information. I heard snippets about a siege, something at sea, something dangerous, but got nothing concrete. The messenger god kept saying that my mother would return soon, but never specified when. _Soon, _I thought to myself. _Soon._

I turned around and headed back to my personal quarters. Olympus was a big place, and there were a lot of stairs to climb. I passed shining bronze verandahs and newly built courtyards. Nymphs and satyrs chatted with nonchalance in the fading light, plants and trees prevalent in their area. I picked an olive from a small orchard on my way back, savoring its distinct flavor. Olympus was beautiful, even in construction, but it was not my home.

I opened the door to my own little bungalow and shut the door quietly behind me. _I need a shower,_ I thought as I flicked on the lights and kicked off my muddy work boots. The marble dust from the pillar was starting to settle into my skin and I felt like it might start hardening into a crust if I let it sit too long.

"Annabeth?" a woman's voice called from around a corner.

"Hello? Who is it?" I answered cautiously, hand clenched tightly on my knife hilt as I walked towards the voice.

As I rounded the corner, I was confronted by a pair of intimidating grey eyes. They belonged to a formidable woman sitting behind my desk. Despite her commanding presence, her traditional Greek robes were torn and she was covered in dirt. Her helmet was placed on the floor beside her war armor, dented and scratched.

"Mom?" I asked tentatively.

"Annabeth, we need to talk," Athena replied quietly. "Sit down."

I pulled a chair out and sat a safe distance from my mother. She didn't seem to mind.

"Annabeth, a new war is upon us," Athena said, piercing me with her intelligent, grey eyes. "You have to promise me you won't get involved."

"Get involved in what?" I moaned in frustration. Usually, I was the one that people came to for advice or to get answers, but with my mother, the roles were reversed, and I did not like it one bit.

Athena stood up and walked over to a window. She threw open the curtains and gazed out at Olympus. "Come here," she said, not unkindly. I stood up and joined her by the window, looking down at the city of the gods.

"This city has endured many trials," Athena began. "You witnessed the fragility of the palace only two years ago. If the impending war goes against us, I fear Olympus will not survive."

I stood beside the goddess of war in silence. Below, I could see the inhabitants of the gods' holy city. Nymphs, satyrs, minor gods, all merrily chatting away without a care in the world. I looked at the newly paved roads, the glistening marble columns and the stone walkway back to the mortal world. I gulped with fear at the thought of Olympus falling.

My mother shook her head solemnly. "We were too late."

"Too late for what?" I inquired.

"Too late to prevent the war," she said softly. Athena put both hands on my shoulder and looked me straight in the eye. "Promise me you won't get involved."

"I… I… how can I promise you if I don't know what's happening?" I said hesitantly.

"This war is not yours to fight," she replied.

"What do you mean _not mine to fight_?" I said angrily.

"You wouldn't be able to help," Athena said categorically.

"_Not able to help?_" I snapped. "I saved the world two years ago, and you still think I'm incompetent!"

"Annabeth, it's different this time," my mother said quietly. "The battle is underwater."

I froze for a moment, staring glumly at the wooden floor. An olive tree mosaic was paved into the ground, invoking a memory of one of my mother's great deeds.

Long ago, Athena and Poseidon competed to be the patron deity of a city - the yet to be named Athens. Each god would present a gift to the city, and the citizens would choose which gift they preferred and accept patronage from the winner. Poseidon struck the ground with his trident, creating a spring which facilitated trade and increased naval power. However, the water was salty and not fit for drinking. Athena's gift was the first domesticated olive tree. The olive tree provided wood, oil and food, so the citizens named Athena the winner, and the city was named Athens in her honor.

As I stared mournfully at the mosaic, I felt inferior to the olive tree, a hindrance to my mother, but I still needed to know something.

"Mom, where is Percy?" I asked almost accusingly. I could have sworn that I saw a flicker of resentment on my mother's face as I said his name.

"He is safe. Don't go looking for him," she replied impassively.

"What do you have against him?" I pleaded.

"I have absolutely nothing against the boy," Athena said calculatingly. "But there is a war coming, and I fear he may be used as a pawn to draw out our weaknesses. Do not let your feelings for the boy cloud your judgment, Annabeth."

"But I have to do something…" I said, falling onto my bed in a heap.

"Sometimes, Annabeth, it is wiser to remain uninvolved," my mother said with her I'm-a-goddess-and-I'm-ten-thousand-times-more-experienced-than-you face on. "Promise me you'll stay out of this," she repeated, her gray eyes completely serious.

"No!" I cried as tears threatened to spill out.

Even my mother's godly patience had its limit. Her eyebrows creased in an angry expression and her stormy grey eyes narrowed threateningly. "I do this for your own safety, Annabeth. Do not take my advice lightly."

"You know where he is!" I interrupted forcefully, jumping off the bed and confronting my mother. "Tell me… please."

My mother glared at me and reached down for her discarded armor. There was a shield hidden among the pile. It was round, very polished and cast an extremely clear reflection. Athena held the shield up, and slowly, an image grew on its surface, a reflection of something that was not in this room and in fact didn't seem to be anywhere near Olympus. The shield was like the video shield I used in the Battle of Manhattan, only bigger and more powerful. Maybe Hephaestus himself designed this one. I gazed at the shield intently, and eventually, I could make out what it was projecting.

Percy was sitting on a stone bench talking to a woman with long auburn hair. She was very pretty, and was listening intently to what Percy was saying. I watched them talk and noticed a stunningly beautiful red rose in the background. Percy seemed so content talking to this woman, smiling and gesturing. I gulped uncomfortably as the two of them briefly touched. The image vanished. I felt like my mother had turned off a movie just before its climax.

"I was going to give this to you," Athena said coldly as she pulled the shield away and picked up the rest of her discarded armor. "Now I see that it would do more harm than good."

She stormed out of the room hastily, leaving muddy prints on the wooden floor. I stared after her miserably, desperately hoping for something, anything to help me explain what just happened. I trailed the muddy tracks of my mother back from the door, my eyes eventually resting on the olive tree mosaic ruined by mud and tears.

* * *

Thank you for reading.

Remember that I still have my forum up which has that recap if any of you have forgotten the details of the story.

Please leave a comment/review!


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